


Peter Parker Oneshots

by MarvelMultiverse



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies)
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Awesome Clint Barton, BAMF Clint Barton, BAMF Natasha Romanov, Clint Barton & Natasha Romanov Friendship, Day At The Beach, Domestic Fluff, F/F, F/M, Field Trip, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Hurt Peter Parker, Hydra Peter Parker, Irondad, M/M, Mind Control, Minor Clint Barton/Natasha Romanov, One Shot Collection, Other, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Peter Parker Needs a Hug, Peter Parker-centric, Protective Avengers, Protective Clint Barton, Protective Natasha Romanov, Protective Steve Rogers, Sharks, Spider-Man - Freeform, Superfamily, Superfamily (Marvel), Temporary Amnesia, The Avengers Are Good Bros, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Tony Stark Needs a Hug, Torture, replacement, requests are open
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-08-03
Updated: 2020-06-02
Packaged: 2020-07-29 22:44:05
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 20
Words: 103,575
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20089999
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MarvelMultiverse/pseuds/MarvelMultiverse
Summary: Trigger warnings: Angst, some language.Requested by @Deviluv4ever on WattpadAlert, alert! We've got a cliche coming up!And it's a big one.





	1. Replacement

**Author's Note:**

> Trigger warnings: Angst, some language.  
Requested by @Deviluv4ever on Wattpad  
Alert, alert! We've got a cliche coming up!
> 
> And it's a big one.

Peter whistled as he walked into the compound. The elevator doors slid open smoothly and he strolled into the Avengers lounge. For some reason, his senses were buzzing slightly, and Peter was kind of jumpy.

Sitting on a sofa was Tony Stark. And some guy Peter had never seen, with tousled blond hair and blue eyes. Scattered around on the other chairs were all the Avengers, just kind of sitting there. Peter blinked, confused. Tony was never willingly near anyone other than Peter, the Avengers, and Pepper. And he was laughing. Tony rarely laughed near strangers. "Hey, Peter," Tony said, looking up at Peter. "H-hey, Mr. Stark," He replied, confused. "This is Joshua. (This name was literally in the request XD) He's my new intern. He's a literal genius. Smarter than anyone I know," Tony introduced. 

Okay, ouch. That stung a bit.

He noticed Natasha giving Tony a reproachful look, and Clint looking a bit bewildered. What exactly was going on?

Peter forced a smile and met eyes with the intern. "My name's Peter. Peter Parker. Nice to meet you!" He exclaimed. 

There was a weird, tight feeling in his chest, and he wondered what it was. Was it... jealousy?

This was ridiculous. Why would he be jealous of some intern? And one he had just met?

"We were going to work in the lab some today. You're not really needed," Tony said bluntly.

But Peter and Tony were going to work on his suit today. They had been planning it for weeks! Peter shoved down his jealousy. The intern needed to be shown the ropes, and Peter wouldn't get in the way of that.

"Y-yeah, that's okay," Peter managed, choking on the words. Joshua looked up and sent a grin in Peter's direction. This only made his senses spark more. Stop it, Peter told his Spidey Senses internally. Are my senses actually that petty? Peter smiled tightly back. "Okay, I'm just going to go up to my room, I guess," He said, turning to go back to the elevator. 

"Actually," Steve said. "We gave that room to Joshua. Because, you know, you're not needed anymore." 

Peter felt like he'd been punched in the gut. "O-oh, okay then. I guess - see you around?" He asked desperately. "I don't think so," Sam said, quite pleasantly. "Bye." 

Peter choked on air. "A-alright. I suppose that means you don't need Spider-Man, either. See you never, I guess." 

He turned and ran back into the elevator, trying to shroud the treacherous tears that started to slip down his face.

Peter sought out the lab where he and Tony worked, to ask Tony for help. When he arrived, he saw Joshua talking to Tony, and Tony was smiling. "H-hey, Mr. Stark?" He asked. When Tony looked up, his face contorted. "What are you doing?" He asked angrily. "I-I'm sorry! I just - the Avengers were just saying that I n-never mind. I'm sorry for wasting your time, Mr. Stark." Tony glared. "You did. Get out of here. What a fucking idiot."

Peter used the remainder of his self control to turn and dignifiedly walk back into the elevator and continue on his way down.

No sooner had he gotten out on the bottom floor had the tears begun to fall. A hand touched his shoulder, and Peter turned to discover Natasha Romanoff standing there, looking concerned. "Peter?" She said worriedly. "Auntie Tasha!" He exclaimed, ducking his head into her shoulder to hide his crying. "What's going on?" He managed between sobs. "I don't know..." She said, concerned. "I do know, however, that the Avengers are being complete dicks." Peter sniffled and laughed. "You don't say." Nat smiled. "Clint and I... we don't know what happened. Joshua showed up, the Avengers decided he was the most amazing person ever to grace the world with his presence, and have been spoiling him. And..." She trailed off. "Mostly at your expense. Clint, Bucky, and I have no idea what's going on, what to think of him. But everyone else... Steve, Tony, Sam, Rhodey, Wanda, Vision, Pepper, Bruce, Scott, Hope... they're smitten. I don't know, I don't think he's as perfect as they're acting. I miss my baby spider." 

Peter took a few seconds to process this information. Could it be possible that they all just preferred Joshua?

Of course they do. Who wouldn't? Asked the little voice inside Peter's head. If Joshua was so much better than him... who needed Peter?

"Thanks, Auntie Tasha. I guess... I don't know what I guess. I should go back home. I can get some extra Spider-Manning in," He said sadly. Natasha smiled at him gently. "Clint and Bucky are busy tonight, but I'm free. Do you think... do you maybe want me to come with you? On patrolling?" She asked hopefully. 

Peter smiled brightly. "You would? That would be amazing!" He gasped excitedly. 

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

The headlines of the next morning were unsurprising.

Spider-Man and Black Widow team up!

New arachnid hero group?  
Are the arachnids of the Avengers forming a new group?

It had been an interesting night - Peter had nearly gotten shot, Natasha had been a huge help. When they were fighting a mugger near the Compound, an arrow spiraled downward and pierced the man's shoulder. When they looked up, they saw Clint standing on the balcony giving them a thumbs up. Then Tony had come up beside him, and, despite them being stories away, Peter could still hear the words.

"Don't waste your time on him, or your arrows. He's a waste of space and time. Come on, let's go back in." 

Clint had punched him in the face. 

It had been nice.

Tony had yelled at him, until Joshua walked up and smoothed things over, because he was so perfect. Then Tony had turned to Joshua and said "You're right. Peter's worthless. Not worth fighting over." And Clint was visibly steaming but made no moves to attack Tony again.

Natasha had picked up the phone to call the cops and, after the call, the duo ran off to throw themselves into more fights to try and forget.

They didn't exactly have the healthiest coping methods, did they?

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Wanda and Vision had intervened on their patrol, too. The duo had been walking down the street after buying food and Wanda yelled after Natasha that she was wasting time with Peter, that he was scum, vermin, and Natasha was only lowering herself to his level out of pity. And Vision had laughed, and said "Yeah. No wonder Tony kicked him out. What a worthless piece of shit."

And then Peter had cried, but his Auntie Tasha was there to yeet a random glass bottle they found in the Dumpster at them. It crashed against the wall and shattered into a million small pieces.

Kind of like Peter's heart.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.- 

When Peter arrived at school, he was shocked to see a new substitute. "Hello everyone. Your teachers have been granted a vacation for a few weeks. So, I am your current substitute," The woman said. Peter paused, looking at the sub. And as Peter contemplated for a few seconds... he realized something. 

The substitute had long, wavy red hair and green eyes, and oddly, she was wearing a bit of a smirk as she looked at Peter.

"My name is Natalie Rushman, you can call me Ms. Rushman."

Peter laughed, but quickly turned it into a cough. He pulled out his phone.

Spider-Child  
Auntie Tasha you did not!!!

Peter looked up, to see the substitute smiling blandly and then retreated to her desk to pull out a book. Peter's phone dinged with an alert a few seconds later.

CrazyRussian  
Oh, I did.

Peter could now see the soft glow of a phone, obviously she was hiding it behind her book.

Spider-Child  
I cannot believe this.

CrazyRussian

Oh, believe it. And change my name back.

Spider-Child changed "CrazyRussian" to "Auntie Tasha"

Spider-Child changed "Spider-Child" to "Peter"

Peter

This is pretty cool. Thank you so much for this, Auntie Tasha!

Auntie Tasha  
It was no problem. I did it for you.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

The rest of the day was interesting. His "substitutes" were very interesting.

Once he walked into gym, he realized he, in fact, had two substitutes. One was a woman with short blonde hair, and the other was a man with and dark brown hair.

"Hi, I am Clark Barnes and this is Nicole Rivera, we will be your gym teachers."

Peter sighed and pulled out his phone, creating a new group chat.

Peter Parker created a group chat with: Natasha Romanoff and Clint Barton

Peter Parker named the chat "Invaders"

Peter Parker renamed "Natasha Romanoff" to "Mama Spider"  
Peter Parker renamed "Clint Barton" to "Katniss Everdeen"

Peter Parker renamed "Peter Parker" to "Peter Parkour"

Katniss Everdeen  
:(

Peter Parkour  
You guys are hijacking my gym class. Are you even trying to disguise yourselves anymore?

Mama Spider  
Peter I am wearing a wig and contacts right now. At least I'm trying.

Peter Parkour

Let me rephrase that. Clint, are you even trying to disguise yourself?

Katniss Everdeen  
Well... I left my bow at the Compound.

Peter Parkour  
Great. This is going to be interesting.

Katniss Everdeen  
I'm wearing a hat!!

Spanish class rolled around next, and, lo and behold, there was a new person. They were wearing a jacket and gloves. The jacket made sense - it was the middle of winter. But the gloves - not so much. Until it clicked again. The man before them had dark hair and smiled at them.

"My name is James Bar-Baker. Sorry. James Baker. I am going to be your Spanish substitute," He greeted. Peter sighed. How long was this going to go on?

All day, apparently.

Peter Parkour added Bucky Barnes to "Invaders"

Peter Parkour renamed "Bucky Barnes" to "One-Armed Wonder"

Peter Parkour

Are you guys just going to hijack my classes?

Mama Spider

Yes

One-Armed Wonder

Pretty much

Katniss Everdeen

Exactly

Peter Parkour

Wow, I'm not sure whether to feel honored or scared.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

And this went on for weeks.

Peter was always near one of the trio: Natasha, Clint, or Bucky. They even patrolled with him. And at the tower... well, other things were happening.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Loki sighed, annoyed, as Thor dragged him into the Avengers compound. "Come on, brother! It will be fun!" Thor exclaimed. "Brother, I am beginning to think you have literally no idea of what is actually fun in life," Loki commented. "I'm only here to see the spider child. Peter is literally the only Avenger I actually tolerate." 

When they entered the lounge, Loki immediately knew something was very wrong. Natasha, Clint, and Bucky were missing. As well as... Peter. The god's eyes narrowed as he searched the room, even checking the ceilings. Because with Peter... you never really know. 

And sitting in Peter's usual place was some kid. A kid with blond hair and a gloating smile. "Hello there, Thor. Loki," Tony greeted, standing up. The Avengers each said their hellos in turn, and then the blond walked up. "Hello, Mr. Loki. My name is Joshua," He said, sticking out a hand. Loki forced himself to take it politely, but then the boy's eyes flashed a swirling black. 

Loki dropped the boy's hand, repulsed. He knew an enchantment when he saw it. "What are you trying to do, you foolish mortal scum?" He hissed. Joshua stumbled back, shocked and afraid. "What the hell are you doing to my intern?" Tony yelled, stepping forward. "What happened to the Man of Spiders?" Thor asked. Rhodey snorted. "What, that worthless piece of trash? He's long gone," He said. 

Thor's eyes were thunderous. (ha see what I did there?) "Peter is not worthless!" He bellowed. Thor called Stormbreaker to him and raised it in the air. 

"Wait," Loki said, stepping forward. Thor paused, looking at Loki. "They're enchanted." 

Loki moved toward Tony and held out a hand. The charm faded out of him like a wisp of smoke. Tony blinked a couple times, then focused on Joshua. "You motherfucker!" He hissed, putting up a hand to call his suit. Loki glared at him. "Wait," He instructed. "He made me hurt Peter!" Tony protested. Loki looked at him threateningly. "I said, WAIT." 

Tony was seething, and Loki paused. He couldn't kill Joshua yet, because that would destabilize the foundation of the magic. "Tony. One move toward him and I will put you back under the spell until I can take care of this." "What spell?" Steve interjected. "There is no spell," Sam agreed. 

Loki smirked at them.

"Oh, just wait. You're going to be so pissed."

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

It had been three weeks since the incident when they started showing up.

Newscasts had been playing, newspapers publishing, and TVs talking about "Avengers New Intern: Zero or Hero??" and "Is the new intern, Joshua, more than he seems?" and "Avengers New Intern Highly Praised by Avengers - called Best Person they Know, Most Brilliant, etc."

Every time Peter saw one of these, it was like being stabbed in the heart, repeatedly.

Peter had been staying at Clint's place for the time being, getting close to Cooper, Lila, and Nate, as well as Laura. Bucky, Clint, and Natasha joined too, no longer returning to the compound. They said they couldn't handle the dumbasses their team had turned into. 

Peter agreed. 

And then Tony showed up. It had been a normal day at school - well, as normal as you could call it with three of your favorite people hijacking your classes - and Natasha, Clint, and Bucky were walking out to their respective cars and motorcycles. They were heading out to get sandwiches from Delmar's, and it was Natasha's turn to let Peter ride her motorcycle with her. Peter walked up, chatting excitedly with Nat. "You should really try the ham and cheese one! I know you like the turkey, but it's sooo good! Come on, Auntie Tasha, you have to try it!" 

He stopped when Nat stopped, as the woman inhaled sharply. Bucky and Clint, formerly in deep conversation, halted too. And Peter looked over to see the man who had betrayed him, leaning against the wall near Natasha's motorcycle. 

"I'm sorry, what the hell are you doing here?" Natasha demanded. 

Peter felt like he had been punched again, like old wounds had been reopened. "Peter - I can't-" Clint cut him off. "Shut the hell up, you dick." 

Bucky knelt next to Peter. "Peter, do you want to talk to him?" He asked.

Peter, feeling tears sting the backs of his eyes, shook his head and buried his face in Natasha's shoulder. Maybe if he didn't look, it wouldn't hurt.

It didn't work. 

Natasha hugged Peter, then gently set him on her motorcycle - dubbed Onyx Arachnid, a clever play on her name - and she put a helmet on him. Bucky donned his helmet and stepped onto his motorcycle, and Clint slid into his sleek sports car. Natasha looked at Tony for a long moment.

"You don't have the right, you motherfucking son of a bitch, you goddamn dick. You hurt Peter. You don't get to have a do-over."

"Natasha-"

"Look, you don't get that opportunity. You fucked up. I think we're done here."

With that, she put on her helmet and revved the engine, then sped off, with Bucky and Clint close behind.

Steve was next. He had walked in on them as they were eating sandwiches at Delmar's.

Wordlessly, Natasha looked at Peter. Peter shook his head. 

The four of them stood up simultaneously and walked out, ignoring the desperate look and pleas the man called after them.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Day after day, Avenger after Avenger.

And then the field trip came.

It was a mandatory field trip for all of the grade, to the Avengers compound. 

"You don't have to do this," Clint said understandingly. Peter shook his head. "I will. I'm not going to let them get in the way of my life. As long as you stay close?" He asked the trio of heroes.

"Peter," Natasha said gently. "You act like we'd ever leave."

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Friday rolled around way too fast. And somehow, Peter found himself sitting between Ned and MJ at the front of the bus as his phone pinged with alerts. 

*Bing*

Mama Spider

Almost there. You sure you want to do this? We can always hide you in the lounge.

Peter Parkour

Yeah, I think. I can't let them being petty completely take over my life.

Katniss Everdeen

No shame, you know. We would understand.

Peter Parkour

I know you would :)

One-Armed Wonder  
We're proud of you, Peter

Katniss Everdeen

Yeah, but I'm prouder

One-Armed Wonder

No, me

Katniss Everdeen

No, I am

Mama Spider

Boys, boys, don't fight.

Mama Spider

We all know I'm the proudest one here.

Katniss Everdeen

HEY!

Peter snickered as he put his phone on silent. Michelle, who was in the aisle seat, frowned. "Wait, you're texting the Avengers, right?" She asked. "Yeah...?" Peter replied. "Then why do all three of the subs have their phone out and are texting? The same people? Including one 'Peter Parkour'?" 

Peter paused. "Because the Avengers are our subs? Or, at least, three of them are."

Ned's eyes widened. "Dude. That is so cool. " 

"Yeah, Ned, apart from the fact that they, apart from the two gods who aren't present, are the only ones who don't hate me."

Natasha and Bucky stood up, Natasha claiming that now she could leave them with "Mr. Barnes" and Bucky saying he was going with her. 

The class didn't question it, even though they had literally just pulled up at the compound.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

"Sir, Peter Parker has entered the building," FRIDAY announced.

Tony perked up. "Scan for Natasha Romanoff, Clint Barton, and Bucky Barnes," He instructed.

There was a silence. 

"None of those people were detected," FRIDAY replied. 

Tony silently thanked literally anything and everything.

Now he could explain to his kid.

Tony was out the door in a few seconds, heading to the lounge to tell the others and start planning, not hearing the last thing FRIDAY said.

"Sir, Peter is in the company of formerly employed Natalie Rushman of Stark Industries."

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Peter stuck close to Ned and MJ, and they all trailed behind the 'teacher'. Clint had come as the official teacher chaperone, and Bucky came as the tour guide. Natasha decided she would put on a brown wig and put on a hoodie and try to pass as a student. So far it was working, since the 'teacher' didn't yell at her. Clint couldn't, actually, or he'd be yelled at right back.

The tour went relatively normally until they entered the Avengers Auditorium. This was where they met with the public, gave speeches - and in Steve's case, PSAs - and played films. When Bucky led them in, he stopped. The class flooded around him. Peter peered over Bucky's shoulder, but was too short. So, he made his way to the front of the crowd, Natasha tailing him. As soon as he made it, he saw the Avengers all standing there - minus Natasha, Clint, and Bucky, of course. And, surprisingly, Joshua. Peter accidentally made eye contact with Tony, then quickly looked away and ran over to Natasha. Natasha, meanwhile, had made her way over to the side of the auditorium. 

There was a clicking sound, and before Peter processed what had happened, a gun had appeared in Nat's hands, cocked and aimed at Tony's face. "What did I tell you, Stark?" She asked as the hood fell back from her head. Tony hesitated. "Sorry, who are you?" He asked. Natasha rolled her eyes and pulled off the wig, revealing her normal hair color - somehow still perfectly styled like what? She then pulled off a mask that Peter hadn't even realized was there, it looked so realistic. 

"Oh."

Steve moved forward slowly, and Natasha pulled out another gun. Kids were incredibly confused - this could either be normal, after all, Black Widow was one of the Avengers; or very, very out of the ordinary. Bucky was torn between looking panicked and angry, and Clint's fingers were twitching toward a bow concealed at his side.

"Natasha, wait," Wanda said quickly. This made her hesitate - Wanda and Nat were super close before the incident. Keeping her guns trained on Tony and Steve, she slowly looked over. "Wanda, you'd better have a good explanation for this or I will blow their brains out right here." 

Wanda launched into an explanation: "Joshua, he was actually a mind controller. Kind of like me, also trained by HYDRA, except he kind of puts people under... enchantments. It warps their perception of things. And that's what happened to all of us. We would never have hurt Peter otherwise, I swear," She said hastily. "It's true, you know, I wouldn't have-" Tony was cut off by a loud bang. Natasha had fired her gun at him, but aimed meticulously right past his left ear. One inch closer and it would have drawn blood. "Consider that a warning shot, Stark. I told Wanda to talk, not you."

"Auntie Tasha..." Peter murmured. Natasha turned to him, carefully not letting her aim waver. "Yes, Peter?" She asked sweetly. "Do you believe them?" He asked. He was trying not to let his hopes get too high. "I don't know... I'd prefer some concrete proof. Wanda, go." 

"I- I don't know, I mean, we can check the security cameras from when Loki got here-" Peter perked up. "Loki's here?" 

"Right here, Peter."

Peter spun to see Loki standing behind him, smirking. Peter flung himself into Loki's arms and hugged him tightly. "I missed you!" He exclaimed. "I missed you, too, Peter. And, you know, they're telling the truth." 

Peter hesitated. He wanted to badly to believe them. "Then, why didn't Auntie Tasha and Bucky and Clint get controlled?" He asked. 

Loki thought for a couple seconds. "Well, the conclusion I came to was that Natasha was experimented on by HYDRA, as well as Bucky." He paused.

"HYDRA was the one who gave Joshua his powers, based on the information we got from him before I killed him, and he was assigned to make Peter suffer, by the way. To mentally torment the Spider-Man." Peter took this in. 

'Before I killed him.'

Okay then.

"Anyways, so I'm guessing the genetic tampering they went through probably gave them an immunity that no other genetically enhanced individual had. As for Clint, he's already been exposed to mind control multiple times, by the most powerful mind controlling artifact in the history of the world, so it's possible he built up a tolerance," Loki finished. 

That seemed to be logical.

"Is - is that really true?" He asked, swallowing a lump in the back of his throat.

Natasha slowly lowered her guns. Peter leaned into her. "God, Peter, we're so sorry," Tony said hoarsely. That was it. Peter burst into tears, and Natasha hugged him tightly. Bucky, removing his jacket and wig, ran over and inserted himself into the hug. Clint casually pulled off his fake hair and revealed the bow strapped to his back, and joined the embrace. 

Slowly, tentatively, each asking for permission, the other Avengers added themselves into the hug until Peter could barely breathe and broke off. 

"I j-just need some time, ok? Some of you are going to be harder than others. I mean, I know it wasn't your fault. But it still hurts. It'll just take a bit of getting used to. I mean, it was a whole month!" He said, gradually raising his voice. Tony nodded sadly. 

"I just mean, some of you did much worse than others. Some of you just stood there, some actively betrayed my trust. I hate that it still hurts to look at you, and I feel kind of stupid for feeling this way, but I've basically hated you for the past couple weeks, and I can't just immediately let go of that. I know it wasn't your fault. I know that. And I'm really sorry I'm not strong enough to deal with this quickly. But... can you please give me time?" Peter asked desperately.

Tony nodded understandingly, and the others voiced their agreement. "Peter. You're plenty strong on your own. We understand that we can't just pretend like everything's just going to fix itself immediately. You can have all the time you need," Tony said finally.

And so, the crazy, dysfunctional, insane, defective, odd, and flawed family slowly worked toward fixing things. Because they may have been all that, but they weren't broken. Never broken.


	2. Fake It 'Till You Make It (Or Not)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Spider-Man's identity is a huge secret. But when someone came out claiming to be the friendly vigilante, everyone believed it.
> 
> After all, the Thompsons were a very prestigious family. So when their son, Eugene, was revealed to be the hero, nobody questioned it.
> 
> Except, of course, the people who actually knew Spider-Man.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Backstory: Only Ned and MJ know that Peter is the guy underneath the Spider-Man mask. Organic webs and stuff.
> 
> Peter created the Spider-Man suit (the one mostly used in Homecoming), but Tony created a more improved version of it. Civil War never happened. May knows that Peter is bullied by Flash, but she assumes it has stopped, since Peter has started hiding his wounds.
> 
> Trigger warnings: Not Steve Appropriate (Language)

Spider-Man's identity is a huge secret. But when someone came out claiming to be the friendly vigilante, everyone believed it.

After all, the Thompsons were a very prestigious family. So when their son, Eugene, was revealed to be the hero, nobody questioned it.

Except, of course, the people who actually knew Spider-Man.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Peter wanted to either smack someone (Flash), or laugh in his face. Seriously, how could anyone believe that he was Spider-Man? More likely they were scared - too scared to speak up against such a rich family. Heck, if Peter weren't Spider-Man, he might be tempted to believe it himself.

Of course, Peter wasn't just going to let Flash continue pretending. He had made some sort of huge publicity scene about his official recruitment to the Avengers. When they needed him to go on a mission, he was probably dead. One, everyone thought his stickiness was from the suit. Two, they thought his webbing was man-made. Peter poked at the little tubes in his wrist. They must have some sort of thin flap, because they were invisible when he wasn't shooting webs. And three, Flash didn't have Peter's healing factor.

So, you add all these together and Flash is dead.

Oh yeah, there's also the minor inconvenience that Flash is using it as an excuse to beat the crap out of Peter.

Because logic.

Peter was walking home from school and he was pondering the options to expose Flash.

Wait for him to expose himself. Show up in the same room as him. Do a competition-style thing. Or, just prove that Peter, in fact, was Spider-Man.

Any of these would work.

Peter wouldn't have considered these yet if Flash hadn't just finished giving Peter a bruising. (It would be gone within the next 20 minutes or so.) Acting in self-defense, he had landed a punch on Flash's eye. It was already turning an ugly shade of purple when Peter had made a run for it. Then he had felt bad, because he had used his enhanced strength on a civilian.

He doubted Flash would feel the same.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Natasha was suspicious.

When the Avengers and Spider-Man had worked on missions together, the arachnid had always been so stiffly formal. He had called her "Ms. Natasha Black Widow Romanoff Ma'am", and Clint "Mr. Clint Hawkeye Barton Sir". He had only ever called Tony "Mr. Stark", but these shows of discomfort had always been present in the spider.

The Spider-Man showed up today and was apparently on a first name basis with them all, as if last time he'd seen them, he hadn't used these titles. His voice was different, too, as well as his body.

Natasha concluded that when she saw Spidey train, she would be able to learn more.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Flash couldn't believe his lie was going so well. Tony Stark himself hadn't even batted an eye when he had shown up, even without the Spider-Man suit. There were, of course, complications, like if the real Spider-Man ever actually showed up. Although he was practically doing the guy a favor. Anyone that secretive about their identity would probably be excited about a distraction for the media.

"Hey, kid," Tony had greeted as Flash had walked in. He was at a loss for a few seconds, before figuring that since Spidey and the Avengers had been on many missions together, they probably knew each other quite well. "Hello, Tony," Flash said casually. When the man looked up from his work, he did a double take. "Whoa, kid, what happened to your eye?"

Flash paused. He had beat up Parker earlier today, but that would definitely not go over well. So he decided to formulate a lie. "Well," He said hesitantly. "I- well, I get bullied." Tony stopped. "Who?" One word from the billionaire, laced with hatred and deadly curiosity, only confirmed what Flash was about to say. "This kid named Peter Parker. But it's fine."

Tony nodded. "I'll pay a visit to the kid. Warn him off of you. You are Spider-Man, after all."

Flash hid a broad, triumphant grin.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Peter dropped his backpack onto the chair as he walked into the living room of his and May's apartment. He knew May would flip out - he had a bruise over his eye, similar to the one he had left on Flash. He also had a split lip and a cut near his temple. Of course, he was also bloody and battered, with bruises patterning his abdomen and face. Peter had pulled a hood up over his head to attempt to hide it - as long as he didn't have to look at her, she may not notice. He'd just have to keep his head turned away.

"Hey, Aunt May," He said, entering the room. "Mr. Parker," A voice - a very familiar voice - came from the couch. Peter halted, desperate to look and confirm who he was seeing. "U-um, hey," Peter said awkwardly. There was a silence. The man was probably waiting for him to turn around. "I'm sure you've heard of me," Tony Stark said conversationally. "I have," Peter replied carefully.

What was the meaning of this visit? Was it something to do with Spider-Man?

Or something to do with Flash?

Peter's Spidey Senses were throbbing in the back of his mind, so it definitely wasn't a casual visit. Mr. Stark got up in a way that was probably supposed to have been silent, but Peter could easily hear the stepping as if the man wasn't even trying. He was walking toward Peter, and right when the man was right behind him, Peter stopped. He heard Tony moving his hand, likely to put it on his shoulder. Of course, there was a horrible cut on his shoulder, so that was probably not the best decision. Instinctively, he flung his arm up and caught the man's hand a few seconds before it touched Peter's shoulder.

Tony paused. "Ms. Parker? Do you mind if I talk to your nephew for a moment in private?" "Go ahead. You can go to his room, down the hall and to the right."

That was a terrible idea - Peter had a mirror in his room, and there would be no hope of hiding his injuries. "Actually, we could go-" "That sounds great, ma'am," Mr. Stark interjected. Peter started to turn to glare at the man, before realizing that was a terrible idea for two reasons - one, he was a billionaire, and two, he would see Peter's injuries prematurely, and May would, too. That would result in the immediate death of Peter, and possibly of Flash. The billionaire moved his other hand to steer Peter toward his room. As soon as they entered, he shut the door behind them. Peter looked pointedly at the floor, still trying to hide. "Kid, look at me. There's something serious we need to discuss."

Peter refused, mumbling out an "I don't want to."

"Look, I know what you did."

Peter halted. So this was about Spider-Man. But it was better for Mr. Stark to explain, so he didn't reveal anything that the man didn't already know.

"Look at me." "Nope." "Kid." "No." Tony grabbed Peter's arm and turned him around forcibly to face him.

"What possessed you to think it was a good idea to bully Spider-Man?"

Peter's mouth fell open. "Are you serious?" He asked, finally turning to face the man. His Spidey Senses came too late - he forgot about the remnants of the fight. "Holy shit," Mr. Stark gasped. "What the hell?" Peter rolled his eyes. "So you think I bully Spider-Man. Me? Why the hell would I bully someone who's been beating the crap out of me since freshman year?" He asked, anger seeping into his voice. Tony stopped. "Don't try that bullshit," He warned. "Flash himself told me you bully him."

Peter considered his options. One was an identity reveal right here, right now. Probably stupid. Two was to convince Tony that Flash bullied him - shouldn't be too hard, considering it was the truth. Three was to literally just jump out of the window and run. Four, pretend that he did, in fact, bully Flash. One, three, and four were probably not viable options, so he went with two.

"Look, Mr. Stark, I don't know why Flash lied to you, but you can even ask my aunt for confirmation," Peter said, confused. Tony inhaled sharply. Something had connected inside his brain, and Peter was suddenly scared.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Tony may have made an idiotic mistake. The kid, Flash, came along claiming to be Spider-Man, and everyone believed him. But he acted and sounded entirely different from the real Spidey. This kid - what was his name, Peter - sounded exactly like Spidey, with the same mannerisms and quirks. I mean, come on. The "Mr. Stark" was the tip-off for Tony.

But was it possible that Peter was Spider-Man? Looking at the kid's injuries, it was certainly plausible - he could have been injured on patrol... or by Flash.

But, wait, the injuries?

Those were fading. The mottled blue and black bruises covering the boy's face were fading back to his normal skin color, and the cut - the super deep, scratched up cut - was knitting itself back together.

A look like fear crossed Peter's face, and he turned around quickly. Tony saw the kid reach up to touch the cut that was, according to the conveniently placed mirror, closing rapidly.

"Ah, fuck," He heard the kid mutter.

Now, Tony was no idiot here, and he was beginning to think that something was seriously different.

Of course, he could have just been reading too much into the situation and everything the kid said had been a lie.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Bucky was officially confused. He, Steve, Clint, and Natasha had taken Spidey for some training, to see how he matched up to the Avengers. But the kid's moves were clumsy and weak. Not like the Spidey they'd seen fending off an arbitrarily large army of aliens a couple weeks ago.

Natasha, he noticed, was looking very suspicious, and whispering to Clint. Flash looked highly uncomfortable. Steve walked over to Bucky. "Do you think Flash is ok?" Steve asked. Bucky frowned. "Either he's had some injuries that are still affecting him, or..." Bucky trailed off.

Oh shit.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

"There's something wrong with this picture," Mr. Stark said.

Peter cursed himself internally. Of course he'd slip up somehow, he just didn't think it would be by calling Tony "Mr. Stark". "I do see that there's something wrong here, because I'm certain Flash is lying to you," He said. Mr. Stark frowned. "No, I don't think that's it," The man stated. Peter widened his eyes innocently. "I don't know what you're talking about," He said warily.

"I don't think there's a point in playing dumb," Tony said finally. "What? I don't see what you mea-" Peter was cut off by the man. "I think you do, Spidey." Peter froze. He turned around to face the man again. "A-are you crazy? You think I'm S-Spider-Man? You do know that F-flash is Spider-Man right?" Peter was just digging this grave deeper. Of course he wanted everyone to know Flash wasn't Spider-Man. But that didn't mean he wanted people to know he was. Plus, he was panicking now.

Tony was silent. Then he was scanning Peter's room. "Of course. Then you wouldn't know about Spidey's... web-zapping?" He asked. "It's web-shooting," Peter said instantly. The corner of Tony's mouth raised in a hint of a triumphant smile. "B-but everyone knows that. I-I only know that because - uh, because everyone else does!" It was too easy to make other people correct themselves, and Peter was sure Tony knew that, too. "I see. So it wouldn't make sense for you to, say, have some web shooters?" Peter sighed, relieved, internally. "It would not." Peter had never used web shooters. It was just what the public came up with as an explanation. And a convenient cover story. "I see." Tony pulled out a small device and tossed it in the air. Hovering there, a blue light emitted from it, wheeling around the room. "No web shooters detected," A voice came from inside. The light shut off, and Tony caught it as it began to fall.

For any of y'all confused, in this oneshot basically the Queen was one of Peter's first villains, so he was enhanced right away. He didn't know his newly enhanced abilities were from the Queen, and he managed to defeat her single-handedly. The Avengers were not involved. He got some bonuses to his abilities from this.

"Hm." Tony said thoughtfully. "Convinced now?" Peter asked archly. "Not really. I think you may have to come with me," The man said. "I don't think I will," Peter said instantly. Then he cursed himself. This is exactly how someone suspicious would be acting. "I'm not fond of going strange places with crazy people. You know, that's how some people die, am I right? Better safe then sorry, you know, Mr. Stark?" Peter said conversationally. "I think you should come with me," Tony said. Peter heard the quiet charge of a repulsor. "Whoa there, Mr. Stark. Threatening a minor. Don't you know that's illegal?" This only made the man's smile grow. Ohhh right. That's the voice he uses for Spider-Manning. "Ahem, I mean. I just- I have homework," Peter mumbled.

Tony smirked. He turned to open the door, and stepped out. "Ms. Parker? There's some stuff Peter and I have to talk about, at the tower. He's a very gifted kid. Do you mind if he comes with me?" Peter heard him asking. Now was Peter's chance. He slid open the window and walked down the side of the walls of the apartment, after checking to make sure nobody was around. He jumped down to the ground, rolling, and began to run. That was when he heard a whirring. "So, Mr. Parker. Not Spider-Man?" Tony asked, touching down next to Peter as he stepped out of the suit. "I used the fire escape," Peter said weakly. "Uh-huh. Where's the suit?" Tony asked.

Oh.

He thought, like so many others, that his stickiness was due to the suit. "I'm not Spider-Man. I don't have a suit." Tony pulled out the contraption from earlier, and after a few seconds, it beeped and announced that Peter did not, in fact, have a suit on him. "Hm." Tony said noncommittally. The pause that followed lasted about 10 seconds until he picked up Peter and launched off the ground in the Iron Man suit. "Mr. Stark!" Peter yelled over the wind as they shot up hundreds of feet into the air. Looping in the air, Tony sped off toward Stark Tower.

"Crap! Mr. Stark, what the heck?" Peter yelled angrily. "Kid, you're going to want to hold on," The man said casually. Peter started planning his course of action of the next few minutes. Based off of their speed, they'd arrive at the tower in about 45 seconds. He couldn't risk trying to fight the man - Peter could fall, and then he'd have to use his webbing. That would end in a whole lot of awkwardness. So, he'd have to make an escape at the tower. Once they were inside the building, he could make a break for the stairs. Once the door shut behind him, he'd climb up above the door. Once Tony followed him into the stairwell, he would drop down and make a break for the window they would doubtlessly arrive through. The only issue was, depending on where they arrived in the tower - what floor, what room - there may not be stairs. So Peter would have to hope for the best.

In exactly 45 seconds - Peter was right! - they landed at the tower. Tony casually walked out of his Iron Man suit and guided (read, pushed) him through a small door embedded into a window. When they walked in, Peter was surprised to see that it led to the lounge. Peter has spent a lot of time here with the Avengers - playing games, eating pizza (with the mask mostly on, of course), even just talking casually to them.

He was not, of course, expecting to see Flash there.

Flash went pale when he saw Tony walk into the room, nudging Peter in before him. "Shit," Peter muttered, looking down. "So, Flash, your bully?" Tony said, a hint of anger in his voice. Flash gaped. "I- yeah?" He said, but it sounded more like a question. "Glad to know that was probably fake." Flash stopped. Tony turned his face to yawn, and Flash took advantage of the situation to glare at Peter and mouth "You're dead," at him. Peter looked away.

"So. I was thinking I would take this, quote unquote, bully, in for some testing." Flash frowned. "Testing? Why?" He asked. Peter sighed. "For some reason, he thinks I'm Spider-Man," He explained. "What? That's impossible! I'm Spider-Man!" Flash yelled.

"No, you're insecure," Peter said under his breath.

Tony snorted, obviously hearing him. Peter took in the injury he gave Flash - it looked horrible. It was an ugly mix of many shades, swollen near-shut. "I'm, uh, sorry about your - y'know, eye." Peter said hesitantly. Flash made an ugly sound, glaring at Peter. He did a double take, doubtlessly realizing that Peter had no bruises or cuts.

Oh.

Peter typically put on bandages before leaving for school, just to make sure Flash wasn't suspicious.

"Hey, Stark, what's u- oh hello there Spidey. Random kid," Clint said, walking in. Peter didn't like the emphasis the man put on "Spidey". Peter was hoping Flash's lie may take the spotlight off of him, especially once it was proved to be a falsity.

Except wait.

Anywhere Clint was, Natasha was sure to be there too.

Typically before, but there were a few notable exceptions.

Sure enough, Peter's senses went off and and Natasha walked in. She only nodded curtly to her audience, then walked over to kiss Clint on the cheek. (I'm sorry, I had to, I ship them so much.)

Flash's jaw had dropped. Peter mentally cursed him - Peter had seen this before, on missions, but their relationship was not public knowledge. Peter glanced around quickly, before running through his plan. Considering Wanda and Vision had left for a mission in Europe, he didn't have to worry about those two. But who knew about the others? Peter just had to hope they weren't in the stairwell.

Peter glanced furtively at the trio of Avengers, then at Flash. The boy was still staring daggers at Peter, but Peter shook his head minutely. Flash looked confused, so Peter mouthed "I'm leaving," at him. He saw the internal debate on Flash's face. Tell them of his escape plan to make Peter's life worse, or not say anything, making Flash's life better. What would he choose?

Peter got the answer when Flash jerked his head toward the door to the stairs. Flash may hate Peter, but he still valued himself over lowering Peter's self-esteem.

So Peter darted for the door when nobody was looking and, checking to see that there was nobody there, flipped onto the wall. Realizing that Tony now had backup - not part of the plan, Peter had to devise a Plan B. So, he ran up the wall, dodging around stairs and climbing floors incredibly quickly. Peter's Spidey Senses went off, and Peter flipped himself under the closest stairway. There was a clicking sound, and somebody came through a door above him. When Peter risked a quick peek, sheltered from sight by the overhang of the stairs, he saw none other than the Winter Soldier strolling down the stairs. Peter had one chance at this.

3... 2... 1... now!

As Bucky descended another step, Peter darted a few more steps up the wall, then flipped himself over the stair railing. Tony was yelling downstairs, so Peter turned and ran into the door Bucky had just left from.

And staring at him was one very surprised Captain America.

Peter's eyes widened. How much had he seen? The flip? The wall-climbing? Or just the running in?

"It isn't what it looks like, Mr. Steve Captain Ame- heh, sorry." Peter slapped himself mentally for slipping into his automatic Spidey mannerisms.

Steve clearly noticed this too - he wasn't an idiot.

"You're the Spider-Man," Steve breathed. "What? No I'm not!" Peter said anxiously. "You were running up the wall! And you flipped over the stairs! " He exclaimed.

Peter fucked up.

"Sir, please, you can't tell anyone about this!" He begged. Steve shook his head. "I-I'm sorry, kid, but we need you. There can't be an imposter hero," Steve said softly. "Really? Are you fucking afraid that your reputation as a goddamn hero team would be ruined?" Peter yelled angrily.

Steve shook his head. "Language, kid. If that were the only reason, I would let you go and forget that Flash isn't Spider-Man." "Then what's the other reason?" "Flash could get hurt," Steve said simply.

Peter shouldn't care.

In all his rights, he shouldn't care if Flash was hurt.

But he did.

"Damn it!" Peter spat angrily.

The look of pity on Steve's face as he muttered another'language' showed that he clearly felt bad for Peter.

"Okay. So what you're saying is that the one thing I've worked on - keeping my identity safe - I should just reveal, so that Flash doesn't get himself hurt? He's not an idiot, you know," Peter challenged.

"No, I'm not saying you should give up your identity. Getting Flash off the team and revealing your identity aren't mutually inclusive. There are other solutions."

Peter stopped. "So what exactly are you trying to say?"

Steve smirked.

"So you manage to get by me. I tried to stop you, of course, but I just finished training and I'm tired. You make it out of the tower through a window that is conveniently placed down the hall behind me, then two left turns, one right turn, and it's right there. You get out of the window and leave. You don't get caught because sadly I thought I saw you run a different way. I drop some hints that I think Flash is genuine, because it's not like I saw anything, of course, apart from you running in here. You come by tomorrow because, oh no, something came up about your identity and you realize it's important that Flash's charade comes to an end. I'm the first one you see. After all, at 11:00 on Saturdays, which just happens to be tomorrow, I'm always at my art studio on the 79th floor, twelfth floor from the left. So you go there. It's urgent, after all. You need to talk. So, lacking a better place, I'll bring you to the lounge to talk. Of course, if Flash happens to be there, it wouldn't be my fault. And if the rest of the Avengers happened to be there as well, then that's a shame. And if you prove that he isn't Spidey and you are, well, that's certainly an unfortunate set of events," Steve said casually.

Peter felt the beginnings of a smile form at the edges of his lips. "Of course. If anything, sadly, happens at patrol tonight regarding my identity, I will come to you. Purely hypothetically, of course," Peter promised.

"It's a deal."

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

Oh no! Peter realized last night, in the midst of a patrol, that the new person claiming to be Spider-Man could be in danger.

That was why he was now sitting on the window of Steve's art studio in his suit, knocking 'frantically' at the window. Steve strolled in at exactly 11:00, and sat down at an easel. Peter knocked again, and Steve looked up. Feigning surprise, he walked over to the window. "Spider-Man. Nice to see you," He said, smirking a bit. "Something came up. It's about my identity," Peter said quickly.

They were really putting on a show.

"Ah! Do you need to talk?" Steve asked.

"Yes!"

"Alright, follow me. We can go to the lounge. Not like there's a better place."

Steve kicked the door open dramatically, revealing all the Avengers assembled in the lounge, sitting down and talking. And there was Flash, lounging in a chair, eating a pretzel. "Oh. Oh wow. I wasn't expecting people to be here!" Steve said loudly. Everyone looked up.

Seeing one Captain America and one Spider-Man.

Emotions ranged from shock - Sam - to confusion - Rhodey - to smugness - Natasha. People were looking back and forth between Flash and Peter. "I - uh, what - I didn't-" Flash stammered, horrified. Anger was quickly forming on the Avengers' faces. "Wait, Flash? Wait, Spidey? What is going on here?" Steve asked melodramatically.

Peter laughed.

"Hey look, it's my personal identity crisis," Peter quipped.

"What's wrong, Flash? Civilian life not exciting enough for you? Going for the big leagues?" He asked. Flash went pale.

Tony was looking curious, as though Peter were some kind of science he had yet to understand.

Peter supposed that was somewhat accurate.

"A-aren't you the one going for the big leagues? I'm the real Spider-Man," Flash stammered, caught off guard.

"Oh, I'm glad you're a fan of my amazing-ness, but I'm afraid only I can harness the true beauty of being New York's favorite web-slinger," Peter retorted instantly.

"Prove it," Flash challenged.

Peter spread his arms in a 'what can I do?' gesture, then walked up the wall. Flash rolled his eyes. "Yeah, right. You could've gotten a rip-off version of my suit," He said, smirking.

"Ohhhh, you've been woefully misinformed. You see, my suit doesn't do the sticking for me. I'm the sticky one." Peter pulled off his suit dramatically, leaving only his mask on.

(Leaving his normal clothing on, a white shirt and jeans, any of y'all filthy sneks out there.)

Peter had made sure the clothing he wore under the suit was common. If he had worn a science pun t-shirt, Flash would have certainly recognized it.

He made a big show of walking up to the wall, then stepped up and walked casually up the wall, across the ceiling, and down the other side. "Can you do that?" Peter asked, grinning beneath the mask. Flash was rapidly turning pale, as the Avengers turned to look at him with accusing looks. "Or can you do this?" Peter asked, shooting a web across the room. "B-but you don't have your web shooters!" Flash gasped. "Guess what? I don't need them. I never had web shooters!" Peter said triumphantly. 

The Avengers were all yelling now, and Peter's Spidey Senses were going crazy. He touched his hand to his forehead, hoping it would make the rapidly developing headache cease.

Steve was by his side then, asking if he was okay. Peter turned, looking up to nod, when another wave of pain hit.

"Crap..." Peter muttered. He realized what was happening now.

There were a lot of clues, now that he thought about it. The lights were rapidly getting brighter, and every word, whispered or not, sounded like loud yelling. Peter could feel his skin crawling with the increase of sensory input. He could only thank his mask for providing him with a small bit of protection against the blazing light and yelling that sounded like exploding bombs.

People were running now, he heard Tony loudly making a dash for Peter. There was a soft pitter-patter that Peter was grateful for, then realized it was Natasha, usually more than silent, but now he could hear her movements. She knelt wordlessly by his side and made a few gestures with her hands that he recognized as sign language.

Are you okay?

Peter's eyes widened as he realized what a good strategy this was.

Dim the lights. Tell everyone to stop yelling.

Natasha turned to Clint and repeated the signs Peter had just made. The archer nodded and silently - well, loudly to Peter, but not too loudly - ran off to turn down the lights. Natasha looked up at the Avengers and held a finger to her lips in a 'be quiet' gesture. They thankfully fell quiet, leaving Peter to hear their breathing echoing in his ears.

Does this happen a lot? Natasha signed.

Flash asked something, and it sounded like a sonic boom in Peter's ears until Natasha looked up at him and made the quiet gesture again, paired with a death glare, and Flash obligingly fell silent.

It's complicated. Peter attempted to sign. His hands were shaking from the loud noises.

It's... very ugly? I'm confused.

Sorry. It's complicated. Those two are similar. I'm kind of trembling right now.

No worries, kid. Clint decided to join the silent conversation now.

Sensory overload? Natasha queried.

Yeah. My senses are like, dialed to eleven. On bad days, they go to a thirty.

Ouch. I've experienced overloads before, because of, you know, my ears. Mostly with sight, but I know how it feels. Clint winced sympathetically. He wrote something down on a sticky note, which he passed to Tony. It read 'turn on lockdown mode'. Tony nodded and pressed a button on his watch. Walls slammed down, cutting out the lights, and causing Peter to flinch from the loud noises. Flash said something else, and Natasha smiled quickly at Peter, then stood up and grabbed the boy by the arm. She pulled him through a door, and Peter heard her say something to him - there were too many noises for him to focus - then a surprised sound and a shove. Natasha then walked back in, a calm look on her face as though nothing had happened.

Okay, so, Peter - you are Peter, right? Natasha spelled out his name using the individual letters, and, with a sinking feeling, Peter nodded.

Clint reached out and drew calming circles on Peter's back.

Peter took some deep breaths, and was relieved when the light started to dim and the noises grow quieter. He closed his eyes.

Natasha touched him gently on the shoulder.

Doing better, spider?

Somewhat, thank you.

Don't worry about it. I'm going to take the Avengers away for a bit, Clint will stay with you. We'll take care of this imposter situation.

Peter nodded gratefully and slumped back onto the ground.

"Don't worry kid. It'll be okay," Clint whispered. Peter nodded, then let his eyes close again and slid off into the blackness.

~.-.~.-.~.-.~.-.~.-.~

When Peter awoke, Steve was sitting at a chair near his bed. "Hey, Peter," He said casually. Peter's hand flew to his mask, which, thankfully, was still on.

Peter waved halfheartedly.

"That didn't exactly go according to the totally-not-plan we definitely didn't have," Steve sighed.

Peter shrugged, sitting up. "The others want to see you," Steve said. "I didn't know if you wanted to see them."

Peter paused.

They didn't mean him any harm.

Due to Natasha and Clint's reactions, they were people he could trust.

So did he want to try for a third chance at a family?

"Let them come in," Peter said boldly.

Natasha was the first one in, shoving Clint and Tony out of the way. Those two scrambled in after her. Rhodey walked in next, Sam trailing behind. Then Bruce... Scott... Bucky... everyone.

"Hey guys," Peter managed.

Tony smiled at him.

"Sorry for that, kid," He said.

Peter paused. Natasha, Clint, and Steve all looked at Peter, the same question in their eyes.

Was he going to do it?

Peter reached up to touch the edge of his mask, then tentatively peeled it back from his face.

There was a silence, then Tony yelled "I KNEW IT!!"

The Avengers, the earth's mightiest heroes, collectively broke into argument as Peter sat there and laughed.

Maybe he could try for that whole family thing again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed! Definitely give me any requests and/or tell me what you thought!


	3. Secrets Are My Things

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter has a secret. A big one.
> 
> And it's that he is Spider-Man.
> 
> None of the Avengers know him, but we can see them bonding with him when he takes a surprise field trip and has to try and hide his identity.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's the background: Peter actually does intern at Stark Towers (like a high level but nothing too special and because he earned it not because of his relationship with Tony) and he's lately caught Tony's attention. Tony doesn't know Peter is Spider-Man, and Nick Fury recently decided it was in the Avengers' interest to learn the identity of the vigilante and attempt to recruit him. Peter made his own suit, the Homecoming one.

Peter crouched on the tip of a building, listening intently for any sign of a crime. When, 15 minutes later, he heard screams and his Spidey Senses activated, the web-slinger wasn't surprised. Firing a web, he swung toward the crowd and saw the fray. Landing on a distant rooftop, he surveyed the scene. A familiar figure decked out in a silver-gray wingsuit was flying through the air, searching the sky - the Vulture. No, bad memories. Liz was gone now. And Toomes was searching. Presumably for Peter himself. His suspicions were confirmed when he heard Vulture yell out "Spider-Man? Coming to save these civilians? We wouldn't want an unfortunate... accident. Or would we..." Peter's senses flared in the back of his mind and he flung himself out of the way, dropping through the air as wind roared in his ears. The vigilante flung out a hand and hooked onto the nearest lamppost. Heat exploded behind him and a loud _bang _echoed through the clearing. "Hello there, little insect," The Vulture spat. 

"Wow, sir, you'd think for an educated man like yourself you would know that spiders are arachnids." Peter shot a web quickly at the suit on his shoulders, jamming a propeller, and the man snarled. He started spiraling to the ground, and pulled out a gun. Peter ducked under a violent ray of blue energy, and he latched on to a car, then jumped up to stick to the bottom of a monorail track. "Coward!" The Vulture called. "Come down here and fight like a man!" Peter paused. "I don't suppose you would consider coming up here and fighting like a spider?" The weapon charged again, and Peter dropped in time to avoid being hit. He landed next to the Vulture and noticed a wire trailing into his suit. Peter grabbed it out of the air and flung himself onto a building. 

It was an earpiece. "Hello there, I would like to order a pizza-" The web-slinger paused to dodge another gunshot. "With extra cheese- why HELLO there, wingsuit - and also pineapple." Silence on the other side. "Nice chat! Please deliver my pizza to 1234 Spidey Is Fabulous Street." With that, Peter crushed the comm under his foot. 

Peter turned his attention to Toomes. "Hi there, I'm taking up a career as a "sturdy tech" salesman. Have you ever found that your wingsuits and comm chips crush easily under the weight of one moderately-sized superhero/vigilante? Then I have got - ow, please don't shoot at me while I'm salesperson-ing - I have got a solution for you! Dude I said please DON'T shoot at me."

~Time skip. Enjoy your newfound 60 seconds because I'm crap at fight scenes~

Peter sat on the top of a building again - he couldn't help it. The view was amazing. Until a certain red-and-gold-clad metal man had to screw it up.

His Spidey Sense went off - someone was walking up behind him. "Spider-Man." Peter sighed and resisted the urge to smack his head against a wall. "Ah, Mr. Stark. Here to spread your glorious-ness?" Peter asked. "Well, that's not how I would put it. But yeah." The arachnid rolled his eyes. "So, Tin Can, what do you want?" 

The Avengers had been confronting him recently, on a regular basis. Typically in pairs - Captain America and the Winter Soldier, Iron Man and War Machine, and so on. Although Peter noticed that some of them - especially the Black Widow - were pulling their punches. Natasha had once looked at him with sympathy before deliberately throwing a weak strike. Once, she had even tried to tell him something - "You know, we're just trying to get..." before Iron Man flew in and attacked. A few days later, she said something about "my teammates just didn't... ask..." They never really got to have a conversation, though.

"We need to take you in." Peter blinked. "Yeah, I'm afraid that doesn't really work with my schedule," Peter began. Mr. Stark raised his hand and Peter heard the repulsors charging. "If you do not cooperate, we will be forced to take you in." _We? _ There were multiple of them. "Yeah, I'm really sorry, but I have homework, so..." Peter's Spidey Senses went off, and he located a few Avengers nearby.If he was correct, Hawkeye was hiding in the shadows across a few buildings, the Scarlet Witch near the roof entrance, Captain America off behind the corner, and the Black Widow- "Hey, Spidey." A pause. Peter ducked his head and leapt sideways. The Black Widow - right behind him.

"Why hello there, what an honor - you know, I really thought we might meet again under more pleasant circumstances." Block, dodge. "There's really not this much talking in a battle." The Falcon, above him. Peter smirked beneath his mask. "Oh? Well, then," He shot webs quickly at Iron Man, looked quickly toward the Black Widow, then jammed Falcon's wings and ran to the edge of the roof. "Wait!" Scarlet Witch yelled. Peter's senses flared, and he felt poking at the edge of his mind. Peter yelped, hands flying to the sides of his head, as he threw up every mental barrier that he could. His enhanced senses heard the girl gasp, and he saw her stumble back. 

There was a slight noise to his left, and Peter froze. It was the Captain. "Ah, hello there, Mr. Captain America," Peter said aloud as he ducked beneath his arm. "Another honor -" He broke off as Cap's fist hit his arm. "Ow. As I was saying, another honor to meet the World War II veteran-" "Thanks, Spidey." "Um yeah, you could thank me by not currently trying to beat the crap out of me, please." Peter followed his senses and spun away from the next blow, then rapid-firing webs at his ankles and binding them together. Peter exhaled a breath of relief.

But it wasn't over yet.

_Look out! On your left! _ His Spidey Senses told him. Peter raised a hand and caught - an arrow aimed for his neck. From the looks of it, it was blunt, likely meant to only barely pierce the skin, and with a tranquilizer serum on it. "Ah, Katniss, nice to see you." Hawkeye, far in the distance, was gaping at him. Peter noticed two things. One - Hawkeye was preparing to shoot a grappling arrow. Two, a section on the rope was frayed to nearly nothing. His Spidey Senses grew to a roar in the back of his mind.

The arrow released from his bowstring, and latched onto the building. As Hawkeye put his weight on it, the frayed section went taut. "Hey! Hey, sir, watch out!" Peter flung himself forward as the man stepped off of the roof. "MR. HAWKEYE, SIR!" One building, two, three... the rope snapped, and Hawkeye was falling. Four, five, there he was. He was yelling, loudly, as he plummeted toward the ground. Peter latched onto the side of a building near him, and shot a web toward the falling man. It snared around his ankle, then Peter kept the spool going to stop the shock of sudden momentum halting. Peter leapt off of the building and grabbed him, then swung off, depositing him on the top of the tower. "Spider-Man?" He asked, shocked. Peter nodded slightly, at him first, then again at the rest of the Avengers gathered on the other building. "Thank you." "Uh, yeah, no problem." Peter said quickly, afraid his quaking voice could give him away as a kid. Natasha had pulled a knife, which she was sawing through his webs with. 

"Um." Hawkeye and Peter stared at each other awkwardly, neither sure what to do. 

That was, until Peter gave him a thumbs up, a two-fingered salute, then fell backwards, arms spread out, off of the side of the building. 

As the ground drew nearer, he flipped and shot a few webs in quick succession, curling around the side of the building and he effectively disappeared into the shadows as he made his way home.

_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡° )+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_

"Peter!" May yelled after him as he ran out the door for school the next morning. "I signed your form! Don't leave it on the table!" Peter froze. The field trip. To Avengers Tower. Ffffffffuck. "Oh, uh, thanks Aunt May!" Peter called, going in to grab the form, then dashing for the bus. 

_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_( ʘ ͜ʖ ʘ )_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_

"76... 77... 78... 79! Okay guys, single file line, you pick up your badges inside, let's go!" Ms. Werner called, waving along the students. Ned grinned at Peter excitedly, and Peter figured that he must be making a grim-looking face, because Michelle kept looking up at him, then looking down to sketch in her crisis notebook. 

As the class entered through the (bulletproof) glass doors, Peter saw the familiar face of an intern named Beatriz. "Hey, everyone, I'm going to be your tour guide for today. If you would please line up against the wall, when I call your name, please come forward and pick up your visitor's badge. It will be the only thing giving you clearance around the tower, so please do not lose them. Peter looked through his bag for his pass, finding it buried underneath a ton of papers. Looking at it - Sigma 9 - he felt a rush of pride, as always. Flash glared at him as he pinned it onto his shirt, but obviously he was smart enough to keep his mouth shut. They were each handed Omega 1 badges, and when Beatriz called his name, she looked up, grinned at him, and said "I trust you have your badge already?" to which he nodded, smiled back, and MJ grinned at him. "Ma'am? How is your badge different from ours?" Flash asked loudly.

"Well, they each give different levels of clearance. There are omega, upsilon, zeta, iota, kappa, lambda, omicron, sigma, beta, and alpha. That is in order from least to most access. Then, within these levels are ten more levels, numbered 1-10. Omega rank is for visitors and touring people, upsilon is for family of people in the press, zeta is for some new, low-ranking interns, iota is for more experienced interns, people in press meetings, and some low-level scientists, kappa is for seasoned interns and mediocre scientists, lambda is for seasoned scientists, omicron is for engineers and some important scientists, sigma is for some S.H.I.E.L.D. agents **and an experimental group of one intern and a scientists who are highly qualified and intelligent,** beta is for Avengers who don't frequent the tower and their families, and Alpha is for the rest of the Avengers and their families. Only Pepper Potts, Tony Stark have Alpha 10. You all, with the exception of Peter, have Omega 1 passes, that expire in 4 hours." Flash turned to look at Peter, who tried to avoid eye contact. 

They moved pretty quickly for the first part of the tour. Peter's favorite part was the recruitment center, where they looked at possible heroes to join the Avengers. He grinned slightly when he saw a few photos of himself, swinging into action alongside some of the Avengers, blinking when he saw a picture of him saving Hawkeye's life... just last night. They moved to a low-level training center, where they were surprised by the sight of the Black Widow, Hawkeye, and Captain America sparring. "Um, excuse me?" Beatriz asked politely. Steve jumped, the Natasha just waved, and Clint shot them finger guns. "Uh - I thought you guys didn't usually train here," She stated awkwardly. Cap and Natasha swiveled to glare at Clint. "Well, you see, maybe if **someone **didn't decide to glitter bomb the entire upper floor training room," Natasha said pointedly, staring at Clint. "We were supposed to give them a crash course in self-defense today..." Beatriz said. "Oh, then we can help!" Steve exclaimed. _No. Anything but that. _ Peter paled. "Uh, Peter, are you ok?" MJ asked. "Yeah - I just ran into them last night on patrol," Peter whispered to her and Ned. "Oh, crap. That sucks, man," Ned said sympathetically. MJ looked sympathetic except also like she was trying not to laugh.

The Avengers dragged out punching bags on stands and taught them how to properly throw a punch. Peter's first punch - a deliberately weak one - almost knocked over the punching bag. Peter grabbed it quickly and propped it upright before glancing around to see if there were any spectators. He noticed Natasha watching and threw an even weaker one that still swayed the bag quite a lot. "Damn it," He muttered under his breath. Now Natasha was whispering to Clint. Now they were both looking at him. Peter slid into line in front of Ned, pretending to punch it as Ned blocked him from their view. When he turned around, they were looking away, and they breathed a sigh of relief.

_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_(✧ ͜ʖ✧)_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_

Natasha frowned as she turned to Clint. "Did you see that kid almost destroying that punching bag?" Clint nodded, a look of determination and intrigue passing over his face. "And those are Avengers-grade." She turned and watched as a few kids threw hard punches, only for their fists to sink in with no noticeable movement in the bags. "Martial arts training?" Clint suggested. Natasha shrugged - "Maybe." 

But she had her own conclusions. She had seen Spider-Man throw enough punches to recognize his fighting style. And he definitely didn't sound like an adult when he joked and laughed his way through fights. He was a kid - but age doesn't stop someone from being powerful. Natasha had learned this herself, in the Red Room. Plus - Natasha smiled a bit - he was kinda cute. Like a son or nephew she could be herself with.

Natasha was going to learn more. 

She started walking toward the mysterious brown-haired boy.

_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_(▰ ͜ʖ▰)_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_

Peter flinched as someone cleared their throat behind him. He spun to see none other than the Black Widow smiling slightly at him. She beckoned at him to follow her a few steps away.

Peter followed.

Because he didn't want to be killed.

"So, Spidey, you've got some pretty impressive punches," She said casually. Peter felt himself go red, and he stammered out some excuse quickly. "Yeah, yeah, that's not helping your case. I'm Natasha. Although I assume you already knew that. What's your name?" Peter froze. To lie or not to lie... well, lying would probably just get himself in trouble later. "Peter. Peter Parker." He fumbled to get his hand out of his pocket, and nearly tripped over his own feet in doing so. Peter stuck out his hand to shake hers when he noticed an odd, tight expression on Natasha's face. He was concerned for a split second until the woman started to laugh, and then shook his hand. "Nice to meet you, Peter. Also, I'm sorry for my dumbass teammates. Fury instructed us to get you to join the Avengers, and apparently we have to go in a super roundabout way to just fucking get you on the team." Peter frowned. "Then why the fuck didn't they just ask?" Nat grinned at him. "Some lot of geniuses, huh?" 

Steve walked up to them with a frown. "Natasha, were you cursing in front of our guests? Our KID guests?" Peter stared at Natasha questioningly. What was she going to do? "Maybe?" She said, smirking at him. "I was just talking to Peter here about his extracurricular activities," Natasha added, without missing a beat. Steve turned to him. "Hi. I'm Steve Rogers. Nice to meet you... Peter, Nat said?" Peter nodded hurriedly and waved. 

"Turns out Peter interns here," Natasha added, smiling as she gestured to his badge. Peter looked down in surprise, remembered it was there, and forced out the explanation. "Oh, yeah, heh, so funny story, right? I was doing this project on Mr. Stark - interesting guy, by the way - and our projects were uploaded to the internet. Some intern here caught sight of it, talked to Mr. Stark, and yeah, now here I am. And - I work with this team of scientists so I have a slightly higher level, and so it's actually super cool and - Oh, I'm rambling, aren't I?" Natasha grinned. "Just a bit." 

_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_(⌐■ ͜ʖ■)_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_

Steve saw how Natasha smiled at the kid affectionately, and wondered how he had gotten to her. Nat was never affectionate, toward anyone. Steve had gone up and joined them, and now completely understood. There was something about this kid...

But there was also something odd about him. Peter had looked super nervous when Natasha started to explain what they were talking about. He was hiding some sort of secret - a big one. 

And Natasha knew it.

And Steve...

  
Well, Steve was going to find out.

_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_(◥▶ ͜ʖ◀◤)_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_

Tony was intrigued. Very much so. There was an intern at Stark Industries - a high school one. Tony had let him in because of his exceptional IQ and capacity for creativity, intelligence, and - well, Tony could sing his praises but it would take all day. He had been climbing the ranks all the way into Sigma, and everyone knew only S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, very, very special scientists - and apparently one intern - had those ranks. And, according to FRIDAY, said intern was in the building right now, although, for whatever reason, she advised against him going to meet him instantly. 

"Fuck you, I'm Tony Stark," He told the ceiling. "And I do what I want." 

_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_( ꗞ ͜ ʖ ꗞ )_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_

Peter was actually having an excellent day. Well, except for the fact that the Black Widow guessed his identity. But she was really nice about it, and he was happy to meet her. But other than a slight identity crisis, he was good. "Hey, kid," Natasha said, bringing him back to the present. Steve had walked away, replaced by a new man. "My name's Clint," He introduced himself. "AKA the dumbass who glitter-bombed the fucking training room upstairs." Nat added. Peter grinned at her. "Hi, I'm Peter!" He said excitedly. Clint high-fived him. Peter turned to see a couple members of his class staring at him. There was a scuffling sound, and he turned back around to see Natasha whacking Clint over the head with a pillow. Clint was screeching his apologies for glitter-bombing the upstairs training room, and fell to the ground dramatically. Peter walked over to check up as soon as Natasha straightened and dropped the pillow god knows where. 

"Doctor, am I going to live?" Clint asked, fanning his face dramatically. Peter frowned, considering. "Well, there will definitely be scars," He decided. Clint paled. "Scars!?" "Emotional scars," Peter corrected. "But with a week of rest..."

"Okay."   
"And a dose of Advil."   
"Okay."  
"And a bottle of maple syrup..."   
"Okaaay?"  
"And a rubber duck dropped in a container of marshmallow fluff..."  
"...ok?"  
"The answer is, no. You're not going to live." 

Clint burst out laughing, giving Peter a side hug. "I love this kid. We messed around and he DIDN'T try to kill me! This is like a major accomplishment." Peter grinned at him. "In fact, in honor of this kid, we're rerouting. A doctoring location. For the kid doctor." Natasha grinned at him as they communicated without saying a word. "Great idea."

When he learned they were going to Bruce Banner's labs, Peter flipped out. Natasha decided she would tag along with Clint, laughing at the boy's excitement. Ned sidled up to him in the elevator, whispering, "Dude, when did you get to know the Black Widow? She's fucking awesome." MJ was staring at the woman in complete awe - as well as many of the others. Natasha was kind enough to answer that question - "About 10 minutes ago when I learned he's also fucking awesome, and thank you for that compliment." Peter grinned at her, thanking her quickly. Then MJ came up and introduced herself. "Hello Ms. Romanoff, my name is MJ. You're a huge role model for me, and I was wondering if I could get your autograph?" Natasha colored ever so slightly at her cheeks, and signed the outstretched piece of paper MJ offered. Peter snickered. "Wow, MJ, I never thought I'd see the day you were speechless!" "Shut up, loser," She retorted, shoving her playfully. "I like this girl," Nat decided. 

When they reached the labs, Peter was the first out, courtesy of Natasha's escort, followed by Ned and MJ. Natasha beckoned the trio to follow her, and, with a confirmatory glance at his teacher, they ran after her. "I'm going to introduce you to someone special!" She announced. The woman slid her card through a scanner, and she held the door for them to walk through. "Hello? Oh, hey Nat. And, uh, kids?" The one and only Dr. Bruce Banner looked up from his work. "Oh my god," Peter breathed. "You're the-" Bruce looked down. "Yeah, I'm the Hu-" "You're the most amazing scientist of your generation!" Peter yelled excitedly. Bruce smiled shyly, turning red. "Thanks," He managed. 

Peter's Spidey Senses went off, and he spun around just as Clint was sneaking up behind him. "What the heck? How? I was being silent I KNOW it I was so CLOSE to scaring you!" He gasped. Peter grinned awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck. "Oh - uh, thanks Mr. Barton." "Call me Clint, please!" 

When Peter turned back around, Bruce Banner was grinning at him. 

Peter thought he might have a heart attack and die. 

Ned, behind him, was similarly fangirling. MJ was grinning hugely. "I knew you'd like to meet him," Natasha said triumphantly. "Peter." A voice from the doorway. One could say it was unfamiliar as he'd never spoken to him as Peter Parker, but it was recognizable as one he had listened to almost every day. Peter turned slowly to see the one and only, Tony Stark. 

Peter froze, and glanced at Natasha. Did she tell him? Nat shook her head slightly, as if reading his thoughts. _No. _ "Um. Mr. Stark? Hi!" Peter paused, realizing Mr. Stark had never talked to Peter Parker. "Wow, this is so cool. I'm a huge fan of yours. And, uh, wow, what do you need?" Out of the corner of his eye, Natasha gave him a smile of approval, and mouthed _"Believeable" _. Tony grinned at him. "Well, I heard that you're quite the intern," He started, and Peter's heart started racing. _He knew, he knew, he knew..._ "And I wanted to meet you in person. You're the only intern on my elite scientist group, and you caught my attention. _He... didn't know? _ "Oh! Thank you, Mr. Stark. That means a lot." "It's truth, kid. And I was wondering if you wanted to climb the ranks a bit higher. You're truly exceptional, kid. Your IQ - 287. That's out of this world. So, what do you say?" Peter stared at him, confused. "Um, say to what? You didn't really say what I would be doing." Tony grinned. "Ok, so that's good, you were actually paying attention. You can be my personal intern, kid." Peter froze. "Are you serious? Is this some joke?" Peter peered around the room, looking for hidden cameras - there was one in the corner and one installed in a piece of complex tech, but neither were recording at the moment. "Not a joke." Peter gasped. "Then yes, definitely, that would be so awesome!" Peter smiled widely. "Good answer, kid. I'll send the paperwork to your intern station today. Oh," He said, finally noticing their audience. "Hello Bruce, Nat, other kids." Ned waved, shocked, and MJ gave him a small smirk. Natasha mirrored MJ's smile, and Bruce said, "Hey, Tony." 

By the time Mr. Stark left, Peter's heart was racing. "Oh my god. Oh. My. God. That was either the most amazing thing ever, or the most terrifying. I was so sure he knew I was -" Natasha clapped a hand over his mouth before his identity could come out in front of Bruce. "Ahem. I was so sure he knew I was nervous. Yep." Bruce gave him a skeptical look, but shrugged it off. 

"Alright, kid, we probably shouldn't steal you from your class for too long," Natasha decided finally. Disappointment set in. He shouldn't have assumed this excitement would last forever. "So, Bruce, wanna come with? Clint and I are going to take them to the sub-penthouse." Peter froze. That was SO COOL! Only those with Beta passes could access that level - they were going to meet more Avengers! Probably! Ned was silently screaming next to him, and MJ was trying and failing to keep an unimpressed look. 

As they strolled back and announced the news, Peter noticed the looks of mixed envy and awe on his classmates' faces. "Welcome to the sub-penthouse. Please scan your badge now." FRIDAY announced, causing many to jump who were still not used to the AI. Natasha swiped her badge. "Romanoff, Natasha. Alpha 9. Welcome to the sub-penthouse. Mr. Lang is currently on this level, along with Mr. Wilson, Mr. Rogers, and Mr. Stark." As Natasha led them into the room, followed by Clint and Bruce, Peter was close to hyperventilation. "Scott!" Clint yelled to apparently nothing. "Scott, you have to meet this kid! He's so cool. He joked around with me. Me! And didn't attempt murder! Also, he's like immune to surprise, it's so weird." "Was that a challenge?" Peter asked nervously. His Spidey Senses were flickering on in the back of his mind. It was basically saying _"be prepared and look to your left goddamn it"_. 

Peter instinctively raised his arm to block an oncoming attack to the left a few seconds before Scott appeared, decked out in his Ant-Man suit, growing large to attack him with a pillow - the same one Natasha was murdering Clint with earlier. So was he there the whole time? Probably not long enough to hear about Spider-Man, as his senses would have warned him. "Holy crap!" Scott exclaimed. "How did you know what I was going to do? You did that before I even grew!" Peter's face paled, and he stammered out an excuse. "Oh- um, well, I guess I just heard Clint's basically what was a challenge and prepared for an attack?" Peter said - well, more like he asked. Natasha put an arm around his shoulder. "Peter here is an intuitive one. Not a dumba- ahem, not an idiot like you guys."

Peter nodded seriously, resisting a grin. He noticed Steve watching him from the couch, a somewhat suspicious look in his eye. Well, Peter supposed his plan of going unnoticed was not exactly going how he had hoped. As he accidentally made eye contact with Steve, he broke it immediately, before realizing that was idiotic. That just made him even more odd. 

When Peter's senses started to go off, he ignored them. He was pretty sure it was just the danger of Steve connecting the dots. He could always figure that out later. When the alert continued long after Steve looked away, he began to realize it was something much, much different. They were growing in strength. "Um - hey, guys, I think something's wro-" Peter was cut off by a hand thrown over his mouth. Natasha spun immediately, but when the cold barrel of a gun was pressed to Peter's temple, she froze. **I'm sorry I couldn't think of a good way to initiate this. **Steve was half out of his chair, and Sam - the Falcon, even in this situation Peter was excited - staring in horror. Clint had pulled his bow out from somewhere and, before he could draw it, his captor drawled: "I wouldn't do that... unless you want this kid to pay the price." Clint halted, lowering the bow, fear sparking in his eyes. "And Ant-Man - I suggest you don't try that, either." Scott stopped guiltily with a finger on his trigger button. "Here's a deal, Avengers. This kid is a hostage now. You have 30 minutes before we kill him. Now here's what you need to do." Peter was silent as his attacker listed out rules about information and ransom and various threats. Peter's impulse was to yawn exaggeratedly and start talking, but right now, he wasn't Spider-Man. He was only Peter Parker. "Now. Even try to rescue him, and he'll be dead in an instant." 

His captor pulled out a syringe and inserted something into his neck. Peter still stood there, confused. Mirrored confusion sparked in the man who was holding him. "Why are you still awake, boy? It really would be better for you if you'd just drift off..." Natasha signaled him with her eyes, widening them to convey her message, which he somehow understood clearly. As soon as the man inserted another syringe, Peter closed his eyes and went limp in his arms. 

_Oh, Mr. Kidnapper, please carry me away to your evil lair so I can swoon in your arms! No. Peter, you'd be killed if you said that. Your identity would be revealed. Bad instincts. No. _

When the man jumped out the window, Peter was completely unprepared for the shock. It was a struggle to keep relaxed and avoid suspicion. Peter assumed that his incredibly high metabolism kept whatever serum the man injected from working. Then they were flying, and Peter's Spidey Sense screaming at him wasn't exactly helping. _Yes. I know I'm in danger. Thank you. _ As soon as they landed, Peter, surprisingly, was not dropped onto the ground. Instead, he was carried across the room and put onto a chair, ropes binding his hands to the chair and his feet together. Those would be easy enough to break out of - super strength did come in handy. 

Bold of them to assume he was a normal kid. 

His Spidey Senses faded to a faint tingling as he heard his captor leave the room. Peter opened his eyes and snapped the ropes quickly, pulling on his mask and suit, dropping his clothes into his backpack and throwing it over his shoulder. Shooting a web up at the ceiling, Peter swung to a window and opened it, tossing his bag out the window - easier to explain how he was here. Cursing came from the other room as the faint sound of repulsors echoed in the distance. Peter flung himself onto the ceiling, crouching among the rafters. The door was flung open, and the man - Peter now had a clear look at him, a man with dark hair and green eyes brandishing a gun - strolled in. When he realized Peter wasn't there, he cursed again, seeing the open window. 

Peter took a deep breath, preparing to drop from the ceiling, when the sound of repulsors grew and Iron Man crashed through the window, aiming his hand at the man. The guy smirked at him. "Here to deliver?" He asked. "Here to receive." Clint had soundlessly slid through the door and flung a knife to the man's throat as dramatic pause. Natasha was flanking him. Scott was likely there somewhere - based on the slight shadows on the ground, he was running across. Peter's captor only laughed. He pulled out a remote, grinning. "This could kill the kid in less than a second. I suggest you back off." Tony laughed back. "Yeah, you mean the kid who's conveniently gone?" The man paled. "No. The one I moved to a more secure location." Scott, who had been shrunk, stopped. Peter's super hearing could no longer hear his movements, at least. Natasha was looking at him skeptically, but Clint dropped the knife, flushing angrily. 

"Yeah, he's bluffing," Peter said, flipping down from the rafters. He made sure to land in the classic superhero pose. Natasha grinned at him, looking relieved. "Hey guys. What's up, Mr. Bad Guy? That kid? You saw that window? I was here. He's gone now." The man scowled, raising the remote. "Well, I guess I'll have to receive him later. I can control the damage this does. Mild stunning, tranquilizer, all the way up to death. Unless you want to be picking up the body, you _will _ do as I say." Natasha was staring at Peter worriedly. If the man pressed the button, he could be out of commission for a while. He should have known better than to let that guy inject him. 

Clint's bow, held in one hand, and his knife in the other, fell to the ground. Natasha glowered, dropping her knives and sliding off her Widow's Bites. Tony powered down, lowering his arm. Scott grew to full size and let his helmet retract. "Tell the Captain if he wants the kid to live, he and his pals are going to drop their weapons and come into this room." Peter watched in astonishment as Captain America, Falcon, and the Winter Soldier walked slowly into the room, hands in the air. 

Peter would be touched that the squad came to save Peter Parker if he weren't so scared for his life.

"Good. Let's begin with mildly stunning the boy, so that we don't have to deal with the police as part of our... deal." Peter froze, and Natasha inhaled sharply, watching him out of the corner of her eye, coiled to leap to his rescue in a second. The man lowered his finger... and pressed the button.

Peter was somewhat prepared for the pain ripping through him, his Spidey Senses were going crazy. But he kept himself still, staring at the man, as if nothing was happening. Natasha exhaled slowly. The pain grew slightly, and Peter gasped out "Fucking _hell!_" "LANGUAGE!" Natasha sent him a warning stare - ah, right. Clint was looking at him oddly, and Tony had turned his head toward Peter. Actually, so had Scott, Steve, Sam, and Bucky. Yep. His identity. "I can't believe you'd do that to a kid!" He added. 

Peter exhaled shakily. "Karen," he whispered, "when will the transmitter for that remote wear off?" "The transmitter is due to wear off in 2 hours. If not for your healing factor, it would take much longer. Roughly 2 months." 

The man was looking at him thoughtfully now. "Spider-Man. I was not aware you were part of the Avengers." Peter looked sideways at Nat. "Yeah, I'm not really. Just an ally, I guess. For now." The vigilante said. The Avengers traded awkward looks. "We'll talk later," Natasha said. Peter nodded his agreement. 

"You are going to go back to your tower. You are going to complete the terms set earlier. Or the kid gets it." Peter sighed. He hated being used as a bargaining chip. "In the meantime, I'm going to find the kid. Stark, you have 3 hours." Hesitation. "Yeah, I'm afraid that's not happening," Peter decided. Fuck this, he wasn't going to be used as a safety against himself. He could take it. 

The remote was raised. Peter jumped forward, shooting a web at the man's hand. He did completely miss, still dazed from the bout of pain. "Are you crazy?" Tony yelled from behind him. "You're signing the kid's death warrant for him," Mr. Stark continued. _Oh, trust me, _Peter thought. _I know exactly whose warrant I'm signing. _"I kinda need that kid! He's a crazy good intern!" "Don't worry about this. Although a little help-" "Already on it, little spider," Natasha interrupted, launching herself into battle beside him. 

"You're both crazy!" "I know what I'm doing, Mr. Stark!" Peter said confidently. "Do you?" Natasha asked, punching at him. The man was scrambling back, deflecting blow after blow, and it was very annoying.

"I think. I mean, I'm like 90% sure. Well, maybe 70%. At least a good 40%, ok?"

Natasha laughed quickly, but when Peter saw the man's hand tighten on the remote, he saw the woman pause too. Peter's former captor turned up the dial, and Peter stumbled back. Just in time to see the man start to press the button. When Natasha jumped back as well, he released the button. "Tsk, tsk, little heroes. Looks like the boy still gets it." Peter halted. The man pushed the button, and Peter was about ready to scream. Black pinpricks dotted the edges of his vision, and Peter's world was spinning. Natasha grabbed his shoulders, whispering in his ear: "Are you okay? I've got you." Thankfully, it basically looked like she was lecturing him on something, and it arose no suspicion until Peter nodded quickly.   
  
Tony was still frozen in place, unable to make the decision between Peter and valuable information and money. However, he was also clearly absorbing Peter and Black Widow talking quickly. Peter noticed Clint's eyes had started to narrow. He was closing in on the truth. "Stark. You have the next 10 seconds to get the hell out of here before the kid gets it again." 

Tony didn't move. "Trust me!" Peter begged.

"10." The man started spinning the dial.

"9... 8... 7..." Tony looked frantically between Peter and the man, who was still dialing it up.

"Come on, Mr. Stark, I have a plan. Kind of." 

"6... 5... 4... 3..."  
  
"There is no good decision here, Mr. Stark." "So I'm just supposed to let a civilian - and a genius one at that - go through goddamn torture? That's what you suggest?" The man had stopped now, a few levels below death.

"2..."

"We just need to get the remote from him. All of us together."

"1."

"Spidey-"  
  
"Last chance."

Tony shut his eyes.

"0." He pushed the button

Peter was bracing himself, but he wasn't ready. Right as the man said zero, he had flung himself at him, knocking the captor to the ground and wrestling for the remote. 

It was too late. 

There was a slight delay before the pain hit, but it was the worst thing he had ever felt. Even worse than the building the Vulture had dropped on him. Black almost consumed his sight, and he was aware of someone yelling at him. A couple seconds later, Peter realized it was Natasha. The agony had ripped through his body, and shocked him down to the bones. Peter couldn't stand up until Natasha had abandoned her fighting efforts to go drag him to his feet. The other Avengers rushed to him. "What the hell was that?" Tony demanded. "Language." "Are you ok?" "It was some kind of device. When P- when Spidey touched the man, something happened." Natasha lied. "Oh my god, is he okay?" Peter realized he was still dazed, and abruptly blinked multiple times. He could feel his healing factor already working to ease the pain that had attacked his nerves. "Holy shit..." Were the first words out of his mouth. "Language..." "Ow." "Spidey, are you ok?" Natasha. "Yeah, I think." "If you ever to that to me again I'm going to literally kill you," The woman said, scanning him for injuries.

Peter's heart was still racing, when he turned to see the man still staring at him. "I'm glad you had your touching moment, but I believe we were in the middle of something?" Peter was silent. Obviously the man wouldn't see through their lie about the device. "Honestly, I'm surprised that armor equipment worked," The man stated. Peter was silent. Of course the man actually had a goddamn gadget that did exactly what Nat came up with. This was just too convenient. 

**(No, no fourth wall breaks... don't do it. Don't. Do. It.) **

He let out a shaky breath, reanalyzing the situation. It was possible that brute force wouldn't win the situation, unless the Avengers would man up and help him get the remote. "Guys. I need your help," Peter said quickly. "Peter will be fine, ok? We can only spare him future suffering if you help me get the freaking remote." Natasha rolled her eyes. "Do you have a suicide wish? Because our attacking is getting us nowhere. Nonetheless... I'm with you." Peter turned to the others. "For Peter?" He asked them. Collective sighs. The ones who knew Peter from earlier nodded. "For Peter."

Together, they charged into battle. 

"Tony, look out!" "Hey, Wilson, on your left!" "Natasha, do the Budapest move!" "I loved Budapest!" "Yeah, I didn't!" "Bucky, a little help?" Peter was in awe of their teamwork. They worked like a machine. The man tapped a button on his watch, and a purple, electric shield shimmered up between them. Bucky grumbled a bit, then lashed out with his metal arm, punching at the shield. Cracks spread from the impact site. "Whoa, that's so cool!" Peter whispered. Clint stared at him, a concerned look starting to spread over his face. _He may like to joke,_ Peter decided, _but he wasn't an idiot. _The man was now hiding behind his shield, against the wall. "You guys are going to let him die?" He yelled angrily. The Avengers paused, with the exception of Natasha, Peter, and, unsurprisingly, Clint. "He can take care of himself," Clint replied. Steve paused, nodded, and returned to the fight, Bucky by his side, as always. However, the man was setting up more and more defenses, and when Bucky tried to punch at the shield again, it flickered and sent the soldier flying across the room. Steve ran to his friend's side, replaced by Sam and Tony. 

The man switched the dial to one label. The label titled "_death_". Peter would really appreciate not dying, but if it was for the good of his heroes and the world, he would be fine. With a moment of hesitation, he turned the remote down once to the setting right below it. "We're done with threats now. You've dug your grave, now lie in it." The man said. "Good luck with the conscience of a child on your hands. The boy's probably going to go mad from sustaining repeated shocks. Might even die. But remember this was your decision." They all jumped for the remote, grabbing desperately, but the man was safe behind his shields. Their efforts resulted in fists bouncing off or yanked back with a muttered curse. 

Peter's fingers were crossed he didn't die or go insane. Not dying or going crazy would be really nice. He had plans for this weekend, and he'd really hate to miss them.

If the last shock was horrible, this one was 10 times worse. Electricity crawled across Peter's skin and suit for a split second, then disappeared, and the agony set in once more. He fell backward, vaguely aware of someone screaming. It took him a while to realize it was him. "That son of a bitch!" Tony exclaimed, running to Peter's side. "Goddamn it. Peter?" He asked, scrabbling for his mask. "Oh my god. Peter! What the hell!" His vision faded in and out, occasionally seeing the concerned faces of the Avengers floating above him as the pain tore at him. 

"Well this is an interesting turn of events, Spidey," Peter heard the man say through delirium. "I admit, I didn't think Spider-Man was fifteen. Shame." "Don't touch that!" Natasha shrieked, and a second wave of torment attacked Peter. "Peter. Fuck, PETER!" He couldn't get a full breath in. 

Peter assumed the man was spamming the button, because more surges of pain racked his body. 

His whole body was going numb from pain, as he felt like he would implode at any moment. There was a sound of metal on metal, and a loud bang, and more screaming. Wait, the screaming was still Peter. Bucky walked into Peter's view once, knuckles of his metal arm dented. Natasha also moved back, gun in hand. "You're okay, Peter, I got the remote now, you're fine, goddamn it, Peter open your eyes or I'm going to kill you!" Peter laughed deliriously - "oh yeah, no problem-" "Peter, are you ok?" 

"Uh - Mr. Stark? I don't feel so good..." 

And then he blacked out.

_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_(◕ ͜ʖ◕)_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_

Tony was still coming to terms with the fact that his genius intern was Spider-Man. And also a self-sacrificing dumbass. And next to dead.

He stared at the kid lying in the bed at Med Bay, pale all over and hooked up to an EKG machine, a defibrillator, an IV drip, an infusion pump, and an excessive amount of anesthesia. The kid kept waking up screaming in pain, and the best they could do was suppress it until they found a way to fix it. They were giving Peter so much anesthesia, to keep his metabolism from burning through it, that it would have killed any normal person in seconds. His heart hurt for the kid, and he kept wondering how Peter had somehow won his heart in, like, a 3 minute conversation. Aside from that, Natasha was devastated, and Clint was wishing he had realized sooner. Tony should have blasted the man first chance he got. Instead, Natasha got the killing blow with her pistol. 

It was fair enough. But for now, all Tony could do was wait. 

So he had to get out of this room with the unconscious kid that was so full of life.

_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_(⚆ ͜ʖ⚆)_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_

Natasha felt like shit.

She should have gone with the plan sooner, instead of hesitating until it was too late. After so many shocks, Peter wasn't at his best fighting capabilities. And she should have realized that before agreeing to join the attack. It was true, she was doing what he asked. But when Natasha pushed past Tony, who was just leaving, to get to the room with Peter in it, she wanted to cry. But she was the Black Widow, and she didn't cry. 

But when Natasha laced her fingers with Peter's limp ones, a tear was spotted rolling down one cheek.

_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_( ͠° ͜ʖ °)_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_

As if Clint needed more proof he was one of the worst super spies ever, this just took the cake. He realized who Spidey truly was... about 15 minutes after he actually needed to. And Natasha had guessed the first time she saw him. 

He really was the worst, he decided, pushing aside the door to Med Bay. Clint had to see Peter, hoping somehow he would wake up and smile again.

He was completely unprepared to see Natasha there, holding Peter's hand, crying ever so slightly. Clint walked up and put an arm around her shoulders, placing a hand on top of hers and Peter's.

"He'll be okay."

The doctors said outlook was grim.

Clint thought differently.

Peter was strong.

Peter would make it.

_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_(ᗒ ͜ʖᗕ)_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_

"... did someone assemble the Avengers without me?" Steve asked as he walked into Peter's room. Practically the whole team was there, looking at the boy, still decked out in the Spider-Man suit, mask laid out on his bedside.

"No, I don't think so," Natasha answered quietly. Steve frowned. Natasha was never attached to people. As he had noticed earlier. So this was the answer to the secret Peter was hiding. Fairly large secret. 

"He'll be okay." Steve said to Nat.

"I know. Because I don't know what I'm going to do if he isn't."

_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_(づ◔ ͜ʖ◔)づ_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_

"Why is everything so bright?" Peter asked.

When Peter asked the question, he hadn't expected all the Avengers to snap to attention, staring at him. In fact, he hadn't expected the Avengers to be there. He thought he would be alone. "Um, hi?" Peter asked. Natasha flung herself at him and wrapped him in a huge hug. "You goddamn dumbass, you had me so fucking scared!" Peter was somewhat amused by the scandalized look on Steve's face behind Nat. 

"Ok, kid, one, I'm so glad you're okay. Two, how the fuck are you awake? You are currently under 7000 kilograms of Ketamine. We never go over 600 milligrams. We knew you burned through shit, but that fast? And that transmitter was supposed to last two months! We extracted it from your bloodstream an hour ago, but your body already stopped reacting to it. You are the most fucking insane person I know, mentally and physically. Speaking of insane, why the fuck didn't you tell me you were Spider-Man? You could've saved me so much stress if I'd known that you had such a high healing factor! I mean -" Tony was now interrupted by Clint and Steve. "Stark," Clint had said. "Now you're rambling." "And language," Steve added helpfully. 

Tony flushed. "Maybe rambling just a bit. The point is, kid, I'm glad you're safe." "I second that notion." "Third-ed." "Fourthed." Every Avenger agreed. 

"Well if you're so glad I'm safe, why the fuck-" "Language" "-didn't you just ask me to join the Avengers instead trying to attack me in the middle of the night?" They looked guiltily at him. Natasha was just smirking. "I would've said yes," Peter added. Natasha turned to the others. "See? Now you guys owe me $50." Peter stared at her. "You bet on me?" "Maybe." "Well, we didn't know it was you, because someone decided not to tell us that the hostage was actually the hero!" Tony said, salty.

"Sorry for not telling you. I guess it's just, secrets are my thing." Peter decided. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feel free to leave requests, like always! Hope you liked it!


	4. Avengers at the Beach

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Avengers take a fun vacation to the beach.
> 
> It starts to get not-so-fun when, in the middle of a water fight, they realize just how dangerous the ocean can get.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So. This one is pretty much fluff/angst/fluff, so it was fun to write lol.
> 
> Your trigger warnings here are: Blood and language.
> 
> Background: Peter has organic webbing, stingers, and Miles Morales-style camouflage and bioelectric webbing, and talking to spiders

"Gather around, kiddos!" Tony announced. Peter looked up from his science homework to see him beaming from across the room. Natasha strolled up next to Peter. "What terrible idea do you think he has this time?" She inquired, glancing at the man. Peter grinned at her. "Could be a lot of things."

"We are going on vacation!" Tony continued as the rest of the Avengers walked up. "Is he crazy?" Sam asked, looking over at Wanda. "Quite possibly," She replied. Peter frowned, worried. Who would look out for the people of Queens and the rest of New York while he was away? Clint put a hand on his shoulder, immediately knowing what Peter was going to ask. Then the man voiced the question. "We've got SHIELD watching the streets, while you're gone," Tony said comfortingly. Peter nodded, somewhat reassured. "What if something earthshattering happens when we're gone?" Steve queried. Tony rolled his eyes. "Relax, Capsicle. A two-day vacation won't hurt anyone. We're going to the beach!!" Wanda cheered, Bucky grinned, and the rest of the Avengers began to smile. "And we're leaving in 15 minutes, so hurry!"

Cue panic.  
Peter ran up to his room immediately after Tony finished. He was anxious to start packing up his stuff. He tossed in a few of his best science pun shirts and hastily flipped the lid to his small briefcase shut. Peter dashed down the stairs and threw his suitcase into the Quinjet that Tony had prepared.

There was a sharp pain in his wrist, and he blinked down at the stingers he had developed a few days ago. He had just been chilling there, when they stabbed into the pillows. Then he realized that he was invisible. Then he realized that the bed was pulsing with electricity. Next he noticed that there were webs everywhere, and he didn't have his shooters on. And there were millions of spiders around his bed. 

Then he had muffled a scream. "Please go away," He whispered to the spiders, not thinking they would actually leave.

One of them went "oh, okay, see you later," and then they all left.

Peter just looked back and stared at the ceiling. Was this a dream?

His first reaction was "...what the fuck."

Then his second reaction was to get out of the bed.

His third reaction was realizing that he could shoot webs out of his wrists now, without shooters.

His fourth reaction was to keep all of this a secret so he could use it in the next prank war.

So he did.

The pain faded, and the rest of the Avengers walked in.  
  
Ten minutes later, they were on their way.

Five minutes later, they were at a nice little private beach. Peter was marveling at the speed the plane could fly. On the sand was a large house, probably a mansion. There were also smaller cabins around it. Clint was out the door as soon as they slid open, and made his way toward the beach house. 

Sam started running after him, and Bucky smirked suddenly. The man ran out of the door and sped past Sam, shouting a quick "On your left!" as he went by. Sam, looking annoyed, raised a hand and flipped him off. Peter smiled, and started to get out the door. He pressed a button on his watch, and his Spider Suit appeared around him, then he webbed his way across cabins so that he could reach the house before all of them.

His mask went back into the watch, and he stuck his tongue out at the people who were still running. Clint reached him and punched him lightly in the shoulder, grinning, Bucky right behind them. "Cheater," Sam gasped as he ran up. 

Natasha walked up with the keys and opened the door. Peter gasped. The house was HUGE. "This is so cool!" He exclaimed. Everyone (barring Tony) murmured agreement, looking awed. "Where can I put my stuff?" Sam asked. "Well, let me take you to your rooms," Tony said, pointing at a huge set of stairs. There was collective groaning, until he also pointed out an elevator. "There'll have to be multiple trips, it's not that big," Natasha pointed out.

"Well, I'll meet all of you up there!" Peter exclaimed, grinning. His suit collapsed back into the watch, and he walked directly up the wall toward the railing. Natasha and Tony were smothering smiles, and Clint complained that Peter's powers made it unfair. Peter jumped over the railing, then leaned over the edge, smirking. Wanda and Vision flew up casually, and Clint turned to look through his baggage for his bow. Natasha stepped out of the elevator to Peter's left, leaving him wondering when and how she had gotten into that without him noticing. Clint, seeing this, grumbled and shot a grappling arrow up to the ceiling and quickly climbed up, then flipped off of the rope. 

The Avengers remaining on the ground traded exasperated looks, then crowded into the now-big-enough elevator. Except for Tony. Tony wandered over to the wall and pressed a concealed button. A platform shot out of the floor underneath him and boosted him up to the ceiling, sparks flying dramatically.

Because Tony.

Peter smiled at him, and Tony grinned back - Peter was the first one he looked at. "So, let me show you guys to your rooms," He said. The first one they came to was Wanda's, and it was connected to Vision's. They cycled through the others. 

"Natasha... this is yours!" Natasha threw her stuff into the room, and Tony moved on to the next one, right next to Natasha's. Tony opened the door and grinned at Peter. 

Inside this room was what looked like a lounge **(or the living room or whatever you guys call it)**. There were TVs and couches and all sorts of things. "Whoa! Is this the sitting room **(living room, lounge, whatever)**?" He asked, astonished. "That's so cool!" Tony shook his head, laughing a bit. "Peter, this is your room." 

Peter's jaw dropped. It was HUGE. Windows lined some of the walls, and there was even - holy shit. A Spider Suit designer. This was going to be an amazing vacation!

The next room was Tony's - it was connected to Peter's. About the same size as Peter's, except it was a lot less entertaining and a lot more like an actual bedroom.

****-.-.-.-.-.-

Peter was standing in the sand, eyes fixed on the volleyball. "YEET!" Shuri screamed as she threw it at him. He giggled and hit it across the net to Rhodey, who in turn bumped it to Thor, who slammed it directly at Vision. Vision missed, and the ball hit the ground. Shuri frowned, but Wanda high-fived Thor. Vision brushed himself off and spiked the ball to Wanda incredibly quickly - so quickly that he clearly used his enhancements. She caught it with her magic, smirked at him, and hurled it directly at Tony, who instinctively blasted it. 

Everyone looked at him, some judgmentally, some confused. "I, ah, don't like being thrown things," Tony said, staring in dismay at the burned volleyball on the ground. Peter broke the silence by giggling, and slowly everyone else broke into laughter. 

"Okay, well so much for that!" Clint said cheerfully. "I'm going to go build a sand castle!" Peter exclaimed. "Isn't that... something for children?" Sam asked slowly. "Not if it ends up looking amazing!" Peter said defensively. "Yeah, don't diss the sand castle," Bucky exclaimed. "I'm helping," Shuri added excitedly. 

And that's how the Avengers ended up teaming to make an amazing sand castle.

"Tony! Go scan for some more shells and sticks we can use as structure! Bruce, analyze the samples we have and see where they can fit into the castle! Thor! Go get some more wet sand! Rhodey, Clint, go collect more buckets! Sam, Wanda, Vision, you guys start shaping the base. Natasha, keep working on the details in that gate. T'Challa, get to work on carving out parts for he main tower. Bucky, Steve, go collect more dry sand. We need to shore this up! Shuri and I will finish the blueprints and start the moat!" Peter was yelling these commands, and the people were following them.

"Avengers..." Peter said dramatically. "Assemble."

Cue even more fervent building. 

****-.-.-.-.-.-

"OH MY GOD YOU STEPPED ON MY FUCKING TOWER WHY WOULD YOU DO THAT??"

****-.-.-.-.-.-

"WHAT THE FUCK, BUCKY? GIVE THAT - GIVE THAT BACK! BUCKY! STEVE GET YOUR FUCKING BOYFRIEND TO GIVE ME BACK MY SHOVEL!" "LANGUAGE!"

****-.-.-.-.-.-

"FIFTEEN MINUTES, GUYS, GET THE GATE ON, STAT!" 

****-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Peter stepped back to admire their work. 

"Impressive work," He finally decided. "You don't say," Bucky scoffed, grinning. Shuri gave Peter a high-five, and they lined up in front of the sand castle - which was big enough to go inside, if it weren't filled with sand. 

****-.-.-.-.-.-.-

"Well, we're at the beach. Is it time to swim?" Wanda asked excitedly. Peter cheered and ran directly for the surf. Wanda flew over to him, and a few seconds later, everyone was there. "Everyone take off your tech, I don't want my stuff in that water. That's a bathroom for a ton of animals, Stark Tech shouldn't be in there," Tony said, looking around. Peter tossed his watch all the way across the beach and it landed perfectly on his towel.

"Now, before we all get wet, everyone take a cabin - your superhero symbol will be above the door - and change into a swimsuit please. I'm sure you don't want your clothes being destroyed."

Peter looked around at the cabins, looking at all of the symbols, and instantly saw one with a small engraved Spider-Man logo above the door, and headed over. Vision had seen his, too, and Tony already knew where his was (next to Peter's). The rest of the Avengers were all squinting, trying to see them in vain, and eventually just walked over to the cabins to see them more clearly. 

Peter entered his cabin and found the bathroom. Hanging on a hook was a Spider-Man pair of swim trunks. "Really, Mr. Stark?" He muttered under his breath.

****-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Everyone met outside the cabins, and everybody had a swimsuit themed after their own superhero identity. "Really, Tony?" Natasha asked dryly. Tony just smirked at her. 

Sam ran toward the ocean and simply dived in, and Clint ran after him. Peter darted for the ocean too, and splashed in. He opened his eyes underneath the water, and for some reason couldn't feel any pain doing it, and he could see just fine. It was probably the super-healing and vision. 

"Guys! It's so cool down there!" He exclaimed, surfacing. Tony stared at him. "Did you seriously open your eyes underwater?" The man asked. "Um... yes?" Tony shook his head, muttering under his breath: _"no self-preservation..." "of all the stupid things..." "fucking enhanced teenager is going to die..."_ Peter just smirked at the man. "Super hearing, yes?" He reminded Tony. "Shit." Steve gasped at the man's cursing, and Tony promptly ducked under the water as the captain lunged at him. He ended up missing, and crashing into the water past Tony, showering Clint with water.

There was a silence, then Clint swept his hand in a circle and absolutely drenched Steve - and Natasha, standing near him - in water. "You... did NOT just-" "Tasha, no, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to-" "I can't BELIEVE-" "Tasha, please, I didn't-" Clint broke off, screeching, as Natasha mercilessly splashed him with waves of ocean water. Thor grinned, and sent a huge amount of water rushing toward Bruce, knocking the man off of his feet. Bruce splashed at Tony. Tony turned to grin at Peter, then sent waves of water at the boy, who stared at him for a few seconds. Then, Peter started to spin, then stuck out a hand and sent a five-foot wave of water at Shuri, who shrieked and dove under the water to avoid it. She then came back up and hit water at Bucky, but Steve shoved Bucky behind him. Steve yelled, and kicked a lot of water at Vision. Vision used the Mind stone and blasted the water, creating a big wave that nearly knocked Wanda over.

Slowly, teams began to form. 

Tony became one team leader, and Steve became the other.

Things didn't really heat up until Tony splashed at Bucky, and Steve sent an even bigger wave back at Tony that enveloped the water Tony had sent and hit the man square in the face.

Tony's face darkened. "You just started a war!" He yelled.

On Tony's team: Natasha, Peter, Rhodey, Thor, T'Challa, Shuri, and Vision.

On Steve's team: Clint, Bucky, Scott, Sam, Wanda, and Bruce. 

"I'm sorry, Tony," Steve said, dead serious. "But he's my friend."

A betrayed look spread over Tony's face.

"So was I." 

And with that, Team Iron Man attacked. 

Peter was about to warn Natasha of a sneak attack from Sam, but she easily knocked the man over with a wave before he got close enough. "Looking over your shoulder should be second nature," She said to the fallen man. "Anyone ever tell you you're a little paranoid?" Sam retorted, scrambling to his feet. "Not to my face," Natasha replied, subtly signing that Peter should sneak attack. Peter quietly approached from behind Sam. There was a small splash, and Sam flinched. "Why, did you hear something?" She inquired, distracting Sam, and hinting Peter should go. 

He did, sending a wave that hit Sam many yards away. The two shared a high five, until Peter heard Tony's voice ringing out from the middle of a water fight with Steve. The two seemed to be at a stalemate.

"Alright, I've run out of patience. Underoos!" Tony yelled. Peter grinned, launching himself out of the water into a flip, and splashed an enormous amount of water at Steve, knocking him off-balance so he succumbed to Tony's attack.

"Thanks, kid!" Tony called. Peter gave him a thumbs up, then returned to the fight with Sam. He kicked water at Sam, distracting him. "Hey, you've got good aim," Peter commented as the water Sam was aiming at Rhodey completely missed. "Can you stop trying to drown me?" Peter ignored this. "I bet that's why you've literally missed practically every shot you've made," Sam rolled his eyes. "I don't know how many water fights you've been in, but there's not usually this much talking." Peter smirked. "Oh, okay, we can fix tha- ACK!" An enormous wave of water hit him sideways and he looked up to see Bucky grinning at him. 

Peter quickly shot a web at the man's shoulder to pull himself up. "What the hell is that?" Bucky yelled. "Is that stuff coming out of you?" Sam asked, shocked. Peter blinked, momentarily distracted. "Oh, yeah! Forgot about that," He exclaimed, surprised. "I, uh, assumed it was the suit," Sam said, confused. "So about that," Peter started awkwardly. He was cut off when they were all distracted when Scott pulled out his suit, and Peter expected him to get small. Apparently, that wasn't all that he could do. The man grew about sixty feet tall. "Holy shit!" Peter yelled, amazed. "Tiny dude is big now!" Sam called. "No shit!" Bucky retorted. Scott kicked water in Natasha's direction. Peter leaped forward and pulled the woman under the water to avoid the knockback. 

"Anybody on our side hiding any shocking, or fantastic abilities they'd like to disclose?" Tony yelled.

"Well, yeah!" Peter replied over his shoulder. Tony blinked. "Really?" He asked. "... Yeah!" Peter confirmed. "For starters, this," Peter said. There was a sliding sound, and two stingers the size of daggers slid out of his wrists. 

"Holy shit!" Sam screamed, scrambling sideways to get out of range. Natasha stared at the stingers, before simply saying, "Cool." 

"When the hell did you get those?" Tony yelled. "A few nights ago," Peter replied honestly. "Uh, don't murder anyone with those, please," Steve called. "Oh, I won't! They only have toxins for paralysis! Although, I suppose I could impale someone," Peter said thoughtfully. "Don't!" Sam yelped. 

Peter grinned, and jumped for the man, who screeched, frantically splashing around. In a quick movement, he poked the man with the stinger. Thankfully, there was no blood drawn, but Peter could tell the toxin went in because Sam stiffened and stopped flailing. Peter retracted the stingers and webbed Sam back to the beach. There was screaming around Peter, and Thor cheered loudly from his fight with Wanda. Wanda was using her powers to splash hundreds of gallons of water on him at a time.

With all the water movement, nobody really noticed how far from the shore they were getting. 

That was their first mistake.

"Okay, anyone else on our team with fantastic abilities?" Steve asked frantically. 

"Unless you count detaching my arm and throwing it at an opponent, then using a magnet in my shoulder to bring it back, then no!" Bucky replied, desperately splashing water at Peter, who had brought out his stingers again. Scott hit a torrent of water at Peter, who yelped as he was knocked away from Bucky. 

"Any ideas on how to take this guy down?" Tony yelled. "Well," Peter said, an idea occurring to him. "You ever see that really old movie, The Empire Strikes Back? And they're on that snow planet with the giant walking things?" Peter inquired. "I think the kid's onto something," Tony exclaimed. "But Clint's the only one with rope," Rhodey pointed out.

Clint had been trapped with a foot stuck between a boulder and a sandbar. It would have been easy to get the rope, if it weren't for Steve in close proximity to the man.

They had ignored the stuck man, figuring it made it easier for Team Iron to win.

That was their second mistake.

"Well, speaking of hidden and shocking ideas," Peter said. "I can take care of that. Just harry him from the other side." Tony stared at Peter and sighed. "Kid, you're going to give me gray hairs," He muttered, shaking his head. "What, you mean the ones you have already?" Peter retorted cheekily. Tony rolled his eyes, but gestured for Rhodey to follow him to the other side. 

As Scott was distracted with them, Peter turned invisible and started crawling up Scott's leg. Then, he shot a web at the man's knees, and turned visible. He swung around in a few circles, then jumped off. Scott's knees caved, and began to fall. "Look out below!" Peter yelled. However, T'Challa was still standing in the way, locked in a fight with Bucky. So, Peter dug his feet into the seafloor and slowly pulled Scott toward him, so that he fell on top of Peter as opposed to the other two. In a moment of panic, his stingers came out and impaled Scott in the side, paralyzing the man. Blood clouded the water, and Peter cursed under his breath.

Pain tore through Peter as he resisted the urge to breathe in. He pushed up, to no help. "Come on, Peter," He muttered, bracing himself against the sand. "Come on, Peter!" He pushed even harder until he lifted up the now-frozen Scott and swam out, and hit a button on Scott's thumb so that the man shrank back to a normal size. The wound shrank too, and it looked like it was nothing more than a small scrape in his side, and Peter exhaled, relieved that he hadn't hurt the man.

Blood still swirled in the water, and nobody thought anything of it.

That was their third mistake.

His ribs ached for a few seconds, but the pain receded until he was back to normal. Tony ran over to him, asking if he was okay, but Peter shrugged him off. "I'm fine," He said, grinning. "Let's take 'em down."

His Spidey Senses went off, and he ducked under the water to avoid a splash from Wanda. He tossed Scott over to the shore and webbed him up next to Sam. "Two down," He muttered. His Spidey Senses were slowly growing, and for some reason, it didn't feel like it was simply from the splash fight. He ignored it though, paralyzing Wanda so she didn't take down Thor.

That was his fourth mistake.

"Everyone out!" He yelled as his senses grew even more. Everyone made their way to the shore quickly, but Clint was stuck. His foot had been caught under a boulder that had been displaced by Wanda's splashing. 

Nobody had thought it was a big deal until then. Peter, without hesitation, swam back for Clint, despite the yelling. Everyone on the shore was confused, so it didn't occur to them to do anything. Peter dove under the surface and pulled up on the boulder. Slowly but surely, Spidey Senses increasing in the back of his mind, he was able to lift the rock up. 

"Come on, go, go, go!" Peter yelled frantically, shoving Clint toward the shore. The two both ran toward the surf.

They had almost made it, too.

Clint had made it to the sand, but something clamped down onto Peter's ankle, pain shooting up his leg. He screamed as he felt himself dragged under the surface. "Kid!" Tony yelled, summoning his suit.

More blood spread through the water, and Peter struggled to get to the surface.

Shark attacks.

Of course.

Blood in the water. Sharks could smell blood from miles away.

Peter gasped for air as he managed to get his head above the water. Most sharks swam away after biting humans, having had assumed that they were seals.

This shark wasn't giving up. 

Peter pulled his leg out of the shark's grip, terrified.

He extended his stingers and stabbed it at the skin of the shark that had grabbed him, but it did nothing other than irritate the shark more. The shark started thrashing biting at Peter again. The suit was forming around Tony, but Peter could tell he wouldn't make it in time.

Bioelectric webs. One of his final surprises.

And, though Peter didn't realize it, dizzy and confused from blood loss, his fifth and final mistake of the day.

Peter held his fingers to the shark's skin, using his stickiness to hang on. Then, he used the electric webs.

It kind of worked.

The shark let go.

But it was also flung back about a mile.

And Peter was thrown to the shore, electricity crackling along his skin, the scent of burning filling the air.

Mistake number five was this: Water is quite an excellent conductor of electricity.

They were in the _ocean._

Black dots slowly enveloped Peter's vision, and he let go of trying to stay awake.

The last thing he saw was Tony leaning over him, looking petrified.

**Well, Peter might be dying but ya know, Miranda has accepted Ryan's confession.**

Tony was sitting in a chair in the corner of Peter's new room. In the Med Bay. Peter was lying down on a bed in the secret Med Bay in the basement. Tony _knew _something could happen, so he had added it just in case.

And he had never been gladder. 

Peter's heart had stopped from the extreme electric shock. Tony had made a defibrillator out of nanobots and shocked him again. But this time, back to life. 

Bruce was currently rushing around the lab, keeping Peter that way.

But barely.

The boy was covered in burns, and was basically charred. 

Peter could heal fast though, right?

Right?

  
-.-.-.-.-.-.-

  
****Clint had locked himself in his room. Natasha was there, too, but she wasn't saying anything. She knew that saying anything wouldn't make it better. Maybe if he weren't so useless, he wouldn't have needed Peter to save him. 

And then Peter could have saved himself.

****-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Shuri had finished raiding Tony's room for supplies, and went to see Tony in the Med Bay. When she reached the door, she saw the man leaning over Peter's unconscious form. "Peter, I'm so sorry," She heard Tony whisper. Then he bent down and kissed the boy on the forehead, pushing his wet hair out of the way. 

The girl awkwardly walked in and Tony jumped back. "You have the stuff?" He asked. "Yeah," Shuri replied. She pulled out a syringe and injected into Peter's shoulder. Then, she reached out and applied some sort of magic salve Thor had given her for burns, from Asgard. Surprisingly, all the burns faded slightly. Hopefully, with continued application, they would disappear completely.

Shuri held her breath. He'd have to wake up after this, or there was nothing else she could do without significant time for research.

****-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Tony watched as Shuri knelt next to Peter. She inhaled deeply, then did what she claimed would solve it. 

"CAN I GET A WAFFLE?" She screamed in Peter's ear. 

Peter shot up into a sitting position and almost punched Shuri in the face. Thankfully, she stepped back in time.

He blinked blearily, then his eyes landed on Tony. "Dad?" Peter asked confused and looking barely awake. "Hey, kid," Tony managed, voice raspy. 

Peter had called him Dad.

PeterhadcalledhimDadholyshitholyshitholyshitfuckfuckfuckfuckadhfklahg;ahsdl;

****-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Peter was incredibly confused now.

"W-what happened?" Peter inquired, exhausted. "You electrified yourself. With your own webs. We're going to have a talk about that later, by the way," Tony said, clearly trying to sound stern but failing. 

"Is Clint okay?" He asked quietly, fearing the worst. "He's... fine. Distressed." 

Peter started to drag himself out of bed. "I have to get to him," Peter muttered. 

"Peter- you just woke up from the brink of death. Actually, from death. You _died. _ And you're concerned that you hurt someone's feelings?" Tony asked incredulously.

Was this a trick question?

"...yes?"

"Peter, it's recommended that you stay here to recover-" Bruce began, but Peter wasn't hearing any of it. He ran out the door, turning invisible. "What the- Peter?" Tony yelled, fear entering his voice. "I'll be back! Just - stay here!" Peter yelled, turning the corner. 

Then he almost tripped on the first stair, so maybe he wasn't as ready as he thought he was.

"Peter?" Steve asked from the top of the stairwell, disbelief clear in his tone. Apparently Peter had turned visible again. "Uh, hi, Uncle Steve," He said awkwardly.

"What are you doing up?" Steve inquired. "I need to see Clint."

Of all the people, Peter had ran into the right one. Steve would understand Peter's need to tell his loved ones that he was okay.

"Alright, kid. Come here," Steve said, rolling his eyes affectionately. He didn't wait for Peter to come to him, likely because he knew there was no way Peter would be able to make his way up there alone. Steve descended the stairs quickly and picked Peter up gently, then ran back up to the top.

"Thanks," Peter said gratefully. "I'll take you to his room. So I can make sure you make it there." 

Peter smiled slightly, and Steve put him down in front of Clint's door.   
  
Peter knocked quickly, only to be replied to by Clint's hoarse, "Go away."

He raised an eyebrow at Steve, who shrugged. "He locked himself in there." Peter nodded slowly. "I see," He said, not entirely sure that he did see. Why would Clint be so worried about Peter that he would lock himself into his room?

Unless Clint was mad at him.

Maybe that was it.

"Uncle Clint?" Peter asked hesitantly. There was a silence.

The door flew open. Clint stared at him, disbelievingly. "Oh my god, Peter," He muttered, pulling the boy into a tight hug. "Oh my god. You're okay. I am _so, so sorry,_" Clint whispered desperately. 

"Why are you sorry?" Peter asked. "God, I should have been able to fend for myself. I can't believe-" Peter cut him off. "It's okay, Uncle Clint. It wasn't your fault. It wasn't anyone's fault."

Clint only hugged him tighter. Natasha came into Peter's view as well. "Shit. _Peter._" She said, joining the hug. "You're okay. You're okay," Clint whispered underneath his breath. "Thank god."

When they finally pulled away, they got a good look at him. "Oh my god it looks like you were set on fire," Clint blurted. Peter winced. "Is it really that bad?" He asked. Clint shook his head quickly. "Sorry. It's not that bad." Clint grinned sheepishly.

Peter smiled back. "You know... it's not too late to save this vacation," Peter suggested. Clint tilted his head. "What do you suggest?"

"Well, if you raid the snack pantry... I'll get the TV room set up. I saw a lot of Disney movies in the DVD section... so..." Clint started to smile. Steve, behind him, added to Peter's idea. "And, you know, I'm sure we could order some pizza using FRIDAY." Natasha smirked as well. "And if we pranked the others in the middle of the movie just for fun, then that would certainly make for an entertaining night."

****-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

And so, maybe it wasn't the most successful vacation the heroes could have had. 

And maybe Peter did die on that vacation, but he came back.

And maybe they did get attacked by a shark.

But in the end, they were still able to salvage their time together.

Because they were more than a team.

They were a family.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you guys liked it! Leave requests if you want, and have a great day/night!


	5. How Do You Know Me Again?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter's done it again  
He got amnesia
> 
> And now we've got a field trip

Things were not going well during Peter's latest fight. His suit was partially fried and not functioning well, so when the crazy-strong guy grabbed him and was slamming him into the wall, he was basically saying his last goodbyes. 

The world was fading out and Peter thought of his favorite memories of the past few months - meeting Tony, then the Avengers. Tony hugging him when Peter finally called him "Dad". Bucky's cooking. Natasha curling up in bed with him so that Peter's nightmares went away. Sparring with Steve. Pranks with Shuri and Wanda. Mario Kart with Clint and Sam. Working on a science project with Bruce. Visiting Asgard with Thor and Loki, after he lifted Thor's hammer. Talking to Rhodey when Tony had yelled at him for putting his life at risk. Vision helping Peter when he went on patrol and got shot (multiple times). Talking about their insect and arachnid alter-egos with Scott. Avengers movie night. His favorite memories were so much of the Avengers. 

Peter's last glimpses were of the man running away. He wanted to get up, but he was- he was so tired and all he wanted to do was... sleep...

And the world went black.

****-.-.-.-

"Guys, I'm seriously worried about Peter," Natasha said, looking at the rest of the Avengers. Tony nodded. You could see the bags under his eyes from lack of sleep due to worry. "Should we try to find him?" Clint asked, fiddling with one of his arrows. "It's been five days since we last saw him, the longest he's ever been away is eight in a row. When he went on vacation with May," Tony pointed out. "Okay, maybe we wait two more days? Remember what happened last time we freaked out about him missing?" Bruce pointed out. 

They remembered. 

_The media had a field day when the Avengers all showed up at Peter's apartment, demanding that they were let in and that Peter was okay. (In their defense, it had been six days.) When Peter had finally opened the door, he had looked upon all of them with disbelief. "Guys, really?" Peter had exclaimed. "I've just been working on a school project with Ned! I was going to call you guys today!" _

_It was a good thing that the press had never seen Peter's face._

"Okay, maybe you're right," Sam conceded. "Two days. That's it."

****-.-.-.-.-

Peter was bouncing in his seat on the bus, incredibly excited. They were going on a field trip _to Avengers Tower!!! _May had looked confused when he ran into the room and waved the form in her face. "I thought you would be dreading this more," She had said, laughing a bit. "Why would I be dreading it?" Peter had asked, frowning. May just shrugged, then scrawled her signature quickly.

"I can't believe we're going to Avengers Tower!" Peter exclaimed to Ned. Ned glanced at him, confused and excited. "I know! It's going to be amazing. You're the luckiest person in the world!" Peter hesitated. "But... we're all going. Why am I the lucky one?" He asked. Ned paused, opening his mouth to say something, when the teacher interrupted, yelling for them to stand up and file out of the bus. 

_Maybe, _Peter decided, _Ned meant something about him being Spider-Man. _That seemed like the most obvious solution. When a tour guide strolled up, she had passed out the badges. Then she had paused at him. "Uh... Peter Parker? It says here you have your own badge." 

Peter stopped. "Um... really? I don't think-" Ned motioned at Peter's backpack, and when Peter unzipped the pocket Ned was pointing at, he found a red and blue pass labeled "Peter Parker, Alpha 10". It was emblazoned with a black spider. When had he gotten that???

Peter returned his attention to the tour guide. "Um, yeah, I guess I do," He said uncertainly. MJ, from her spot next to Peter, shot him a concerned look. They passed through the detector, and Peter jumped when a voice came from the ceiling, announcing people's arrival.

"Parker, Peter. Alpha 10. Nice to see you again, finally! Alerting Boss of your arrival."

Peter was 

s h o o k

to say the least. "Again?" He asked out loud, and MJ grabbed his shoulder, effectively making him shut up. "Peter, what's going on?" She asked. 

"I - I don't know."

****-.-.-.-.-

"Boss, Peter has entered the building," FRIDAY announced from the intercom. "Oh my god," Tony breathed. Natasha sat bolt upright and was prepared to run downstairs when the rest of the Avengers stood, too. "Peter is not coming up to this level as he usually does. He has remained on that floor." Clint looked at Tony. "We have to go see him," Clint breathed. "It was never even a question," Tony agreed. 

And so they went down.

****-.-.-.-.-

Peter was peppering MJ and Ned with questions. The incident from earlier had been forgotten when the tour guide called them into line. They had finally shut up when the elevator doors slid open, revealing the entire group of Avengers standing there. They rushed out and started searching the lobby. Peter was freaking out. He never thought he'd be standing in such close vicinity to the Avengers. _All _ of the Avengers. They were scanning for something - or, judging by the looks on their faces, someone. That was when the Black Widow's eyes landed on Peter. He froze. There was something about that look that was... almost familiar? Maybe from television. 

The woman let out a cry of excitement and started toward him. Peter shrank back against the wall, terrified. Had he done something wrong? Was she trying to kill him? The rest of the Avengers looked up, and they spotted Peter, too. The class was freaking out and not sure whether to flee or try to get autographs. Even the tour guide looked a bit panicked. Peter assumed this did not normally happen on tours. 

"Goddamn it you scared me so much!" The Black Widow shrieked, whacking him on the arm. "W-what?" Peter asked, confused. How had he scared the Black Widow? He didn't even know her. "I missed you!" She exclaimed. "Uh, w-with all d-due respect M-ms. Black Widow, ma'am, I think you have the w-wrong person," Peter stammered. 

The woman stopped. "What do you mean?" She asked, frozen. "I m-mean I haven't even m-met you, s-so how could you h-have missed me?" He stuttered. "Peter. Tell me this is some kind of sick joke," The Black Widow demanded. "How do you know my n-name? This isn't some joke, I don't know you and I don't know why you think you know me!" Peter managed this, only tripping over one word. 

When the rest of the Avengers walked up, Peter was high-key freaking out. "Um, Peter, are you ok?" _The _Tony Stark asked. Peter froze, both in awe and frightened. "Uh- I - you- wow, you're Tony Stark," He exclaimed. The man stopped. "Romanoff. What's going on?" He asked. "I-i don't know, he just said he doesn't know me, and - I mean clearly he doesn't remember you either and I don't - I can't -" Natasha was freaking out. Wait - _how did he know her name?_ Nobody had said it. Panic rushed through Peter as he tried to take in everything that had happened. Did they know he was Spider-Man? Were they trying to make him think he was insane? Was it some kind of psychological torture to punish him for being Spider-Man? 

"Look, Mr. Stark, it's an honor, but I don't actually think I know you - or anyone here. Personally, at least. So, as amazing and creepy as these couple minutes have been, I think - ma'am, you have a tour to lead, right? Can we go? _Please? _" Peter asked desperately. 

The woman nodded and herded them into the elevator, as they left the Avengers behind, shell-shocked.

****-.-.-.-.-

The Avengers were staring at each other. "Okay, what the hell is going on?" Tony demanded. Clint looked terrified, and Natasha looked devastated. Bucky and Steve were staring at the last place Peter had stood before he, in all essences, ran away. Sam was freaking out, and Wanda was looking furious. They were all scared out of their minds. "This had better be a fucking joke. Then I can kill him for scaring us, then bring him back to life and give him a hug," Tony muttered. Wanda shook her head. "Something is happening in his mind. He truly just - just doesn't know us. And I don't know how to fix it."

Natasha said the one thing that all of them (including Steve) was thinking. 

"Fuck."

****-.-.-.-.-

To say Peter was frightened was an understatement. MJ and Ned looked frightened, and were asking him questions about things that never happened. "I don't know what you guys are talking about!" Peter wailed. "I don't know them! I never have!" 

When they walked into the sparring room, there were two Avengers there. Steve and Bucky. Wait - Bucky? Bucky - the Winter Soldier? Was that his name? How did Peter know that? And the same thing with Steve - was he Captain America? How did he know _that? _They were discussing something about an eight-step-plan and memories. The class walked in, and they straightened. Peter blurred out for a few minutes as they said something about teaching people how to punch and how to block a punch. 

Suddenly, people were lining up and the Winter Soldier threw light punches at them, which they each, in turn, deflected (or if they didn't, he changed the direction of his punch and purposely missed). Peter walked up, and his Spidey Senses tingled a bit. Bucky - _no, the Winter Soldier, _ Peter corrected himself - punched at Peter, except a lot faster. And with the metal arm. 

Peter seized the hand before it hit him in the face. "You have a metal arm?" Peter gasped, slowly twisting the man's arm and pushing it back. "That's awesome, dude!" Bu - The Winter Soldier reeled, staggering backward in shock. Peter paused. "Um, Mr. Winter Soldier Bucky Barnes, sir? Are you ok?" He asked. _Bucky Barnes. Where had that name come from? Had he read it somewhere? _ "Y-yeah, kid. It's fine." Steve ran to Bucky and whispered into his ear, but thanks to Peter's super-hearing, he could detect it just fine. "Remember, we can't let the kid know he has amnesia. That'll just mess a ton of stuff up. Make it harder for him to remember us. Just - act like we don't really know him, but we apparently have to subtly drop signs, according to Wikipedia." 

Peter stopped. _Amnesia? But - that made no sense! Remember, Peter, if they know you're Spider-Man, they probably know about your enhanced hearing. So this could be more of their weird torture? _Steve backed away from Bucky - _again with the names! _\- and turned to Peter. "You've got heart, kid, where're you from?" He asked. Bucky smiled a bit. Peter paused. "Queens." Steve nodded, opening his mouth. Peter interrupted before he spoke. "And - Brooklyn. You're from Brooklyn." 

****-.-.-.-.-

Steve froze, too. He had told everyone outside of the Avengers that he was from Manhattan. Only the Avengers and some of SHIELD knew he was actually from Brooklyn. So how did Peter know?He had to be remembering some things. 

****-.-.-.-.-

Peter was seeing double. One, Steve. Two, Steve again. Except decked out in his Captain America suit, holding his shield as Peter knelt a couple yards in front of him. Peter's muscles were pounding as he struggled to hold up something - what was it? What? An airplane terminal! Steve turned to run off and Peter slid underneath the terminal, balancing it on the column again. Except he was also just standing there, in front of Steve and Bucky and his class. 

Peter touched his head, feeling it pounding. "I - i have to - thank you Mr. Rogers, Mr. Barnes. Um - bye!" 

Holy crap.

What was going on?

The tour group next went up to a set of labs. There, they encountered Bruce and Clint. Bruce was busy at his desk as Clint was poking down his head from the ceiling vents. Peter felt a rush of affection and then - oh god. Oh no. Why was he feeling these feelings? He hadn't met them. Wait, how did he know Clint's name? Oh crap. He was in some deep shit. 

"Okay. It's okay, Peter. We'll figure it out," MJ was saying. Peter nodded, dazed. "Oh! Hi, Peter," Bruce said casually as he walked in, then paused and apologized quickly. Peter just nodded again. Why did this feel so familiar? "It's okay, Peter," Bruce said sadly. 

_It's okay, it's okay..._

Double again. Peter felt pain in his abdomen and he was screaming. Mechanics surrounded him and Peter saw Bruce lean over him. "It's okay, Peter. The bullet will be out soon... It's okay, Peter. Hold on for me." Peter was going incoherent. All he remembered was screaming "Dad! DAD!" But why was he screaming for his dad? His dad was dead...

There was a thud, bringing him back to reality. Clint had fallen out of the vents, and Peter snorted. "Hey! Even with am- ahem, you're still a jerk!" Clint stuck his tongue out at Peter. 

"Peter, you're such a jerk!" Clint was yelling, chucking a remote controller onto the ground. "You're just salty because I wouldn't do that!" "Okay, I swear it was the controller's fault! One second I was doing great, then Wario's Gold Mine decides to yeet me off the tracks!" Clint stuck his tongue out at Peter childishly...

"You - you're just salty because I - I wouldn't do that," Peter said, head spinning. "Oh yeah? Well what about that one time when you-" Clint broke off as Dr. Banner clapped a hand over his mouth. "That's enough of that. I think you should probably move to your next location," Bruce advised. 

They were walking down the hallway when someone grabbed Peter's arm. "What the he-" A hand was tossed over his mouth. "Jesus, Natasha, if you wanted to talk you could have just said so!" Peter exclaimed through the person's hand. The person paused. "Okay one, how did you know it was me? Two, you know my name. Three, you've already said that to me." Natasha spun him around so he could face her. Peter stopped. "I-I don't know! But as far as I know I've never met any of you. But now I have memories - suddenly! Of you guys! Like, playing Mario Kart with Clint and fighting Steve and - and you helping me with my nightmares and ambushing me in halls and-" Peter broke off into confused sobbing. 

Natasha pulled him into a hug and gently combed her fingers through his hair. It felt so weird - but at the same time, familiar. And _right. _"I don't know what to do, Mama Spider! And I'm so scared!" The words - and the name - came to him. "Oh, Baby Spider, it's okay. The rest of the Avengers- ok you're not going to believe me, Peter. But you have amnesia. For the past months, you've been living with us, here, in the tower. And you're a part of our family. The past five days, we haven't seen you. Then you - you showed up today and you didn't know us. And so we were scared. And I- Peter, are you ok? Peter!" Peter fell into darkness. 

"Where am I?" 

That was the first thing Peter asked when he woke up. He was lying on a bed in an unknown place. And... oh fuck. All the Avengers were there. Had he done something wrong as Spider-Man? What was happening? Did they know he was Spider-Man? And - "Peter." The Black Widow said. "Are you ok?"

And Peter stopped. "You- you know my name. How?" And Tony Stark 

just

froze.

"Oh shit. No, no, no. This is not fucking allowed. Peter?" The Black Widow sounded pissed. And... scared. "Okay, kid, deep breaths," She said, kneeling by his side. "What's the last thing you remember?" Peter paused, thinking. "I was at Aunt May's... and I was going to leave on a field trip? And then -" Peter broke off, shocked. "I- I don't know what then." Bruce Banner - oh my god it's Bruce Banner - approached him. "Okay, Peter, do you remember us?" He asked gently. "Well, of course. You guys are the Avengers! That's so cool. But, uh, what's going on?" 

Natasha - wait what the fuck. Peter frowned. This didn't make sense. He didn't know her name, but he did - but something about this felt like deja vu. 

"Deep breaths, Peter. You were on your field trip and you passed out," Bruce explained. Peter inhaled deeply, then exhaled. "Okay. Am I allowed to return to the field trip?" He asked politely. The Avengers exchanged uncertain glances, but then Clint stepped forward. "Alright, kid. Can you answer me a few questions? I'll give you some answers, first, of course." Peter nodded hesitantly. 

"Okay. We think you're suffering from - what did you call it, Bruce? - selective amnesia. It basically means that, well, you've forgotten some stuff in your life."

Peter paused, shocked. "I - uh, how do you know that?" He asked. Clint looked down. "Okay, kid, this is going to sound crazy for a bit. But, uh, we know that you're Spider-Man." Peter closed his eyes. "You're kidding, right? I'm not Spider-Man," He lied. 

****-.-.-.-.-

Tony couldn't believe this was happening. His kid didn't know him, was actively denying any participation they had in his life, and now was running away. 

Wait what?

Fuck.

Tony caught at Peter's shoulder desperately. "Peter. Peter, please, you just need to answer some questions. _Please._" Something in Tony's voice made the kid hesitate. "Mr. Stark, I just - I'm sorry." 

Whenever Peter called Tony Mr. Stark, it felt like he was being stabbed in the gut. He had _finally _gotten the kid to call him Dad. And now it was being ripped away from some goddamn idiot who had attacked his kid. 

"Mr. Stark, I'm not Spider-Man. I don't know where you got that idea. I'm just a kid, and not a kid you guys want to know. I'm a nobody, okay? So just - look, Mr. Stark, have you ever seen that really old movie The Empire Strikes Back? Where they're on the snow planet? With the walking thingies? And you know how there's so much death and stuff, because the deaths don't matter in the face of the heroes? Mr. Stark, you guys are the heroes. And I'm just in the background. Spider-Man is a hero, but I'm sorry to tell you that _I'm not Spider-Man._" 

Peter was breathing rapidly by the time he finished this, voice hitching on the last words. Tony felt like he was being punched. In the stomach. With a knife. The fucking kid still makes Star Wars references. And the same ones. "Would you believe me if I told you that wasn't the first time you've made that reference?" Rhodey asked quietly, trying not to startle the kid. 

Peter, wild-eyed, pulled away from Tony and ran.

****-.-.-.-.-

They're insane. The Avengers are fucking insane. Peter was running through corridors that he somehow knew how to navigate. Okay, deep breaths. 

Is it possible they're right?

No. They can't be. 

Peter pulled out his phone and googled "How to tell if you have amnesia", because Google always helps. Sadly, Google came up with a bunch of crap about amnesia, until one page. _Do amnesiacs realize they have amnesia? _On some website called Slate. It said yes, sometimes. So that was super helpful. He took a memory loss test, and froze up at one of the questions. Do you have feelings you cannot explain? 

Um, yes.

When he woke up to see the Avengers, there was a mixture of stress, anxiety, and excitement. But there was one thing he couldn't understand. 

Love. Peter was pretty sure he didn't fall in love with the Avengers in like .2 seconds, so he couldn't exactly explain that. 

Then another. Are there threads of memory that seem to lead to nowhere?

Yes.

Peter was out Spider-Manning, when he received a call... and then what? He couldn't remember.

Peter was walking out of the school building and he saw a black car pull up... and what happened next?

If Peter weren't already scared, there was one more that did it. 

Have you recently been exposed to head trauma?

Um.

Yes.

It had been five days ago and he had went out to patrol. He was anxious to do... something, so he was kind of sloppy. Some guy with crazy super strength was attacking a woman and her small child, so he swung in to help. 

Then something happened, and god, he couldn't remember what. 

And then he was being smashed against walls and the ground, and then he was gone.

But then he woke up and returned to May's. 

So was it possible...?

But it seemed so unlikely. 

Peter didn't have time to ponder this more because of the sound of an explosion as his Spidey Senses went off. 

_Mr. Stark._

The urge was swift and instinctual, and Peter had no idea where it came from. 

_I have to protect him. _

Why would Peter want to protect him?

If Peter liked him and wanted to help him... and then forgot him... but the emotions remained. 

Oh god. They were right.

Peter swung through the hallways toward the sound of the explosion, ignoring the pain of not using his webshooters. He could hear the Avengers yelling, and he saw civilians rushing out toward the exit.

Thankfully, whatever happened, the civilians weren't a target. 

Before he dove into the action, some instinct told him to press a button on his watch. When he did, a version of his suit formed around him. Not the Iron Spider, sadly, so he wouldn't be bulletproof today. Wait, what was the Iron Spider? 

Peter grasped desperately at the thread of memory that had entered his mind, but it was eluding him.

"Damn it," Peter muttered. 

_Then_ he dove into the action.

Peter ran into the room to see the Avengers, standing in battle position, facing a gang.

And one of them was StrongBoi, as Peter decided to call him. 

"You bastards!" Steve yelled, shield clutched in his hand. 

"That means, you motherfuckers!" Peter translated as he dropped into the room, landing in a smooth roll. 

"Pe-Spidey, what the hell are you doing here?" Clint demanded, fear sparking in his eyes. "Oh, this dick-" "Language, kid," "Is a guy who kinda yeeted me into walls the other day." Steve blinked. "Yeeted you into a wall?" He asked. "Yeah, I'll explain what yeeting is later. Anyways, I think you guys were right," Peter announced. "I get that a lot," Mr. Stark conceded. "Wow, is Mr. Stark really that egotistical?" Mr. Stark dropped his eyes, but not before Peter could see the pain flashing in them. 

Okay, so bad question. Obviously they were closer than Peter had thought, and now he had hurt Mr Stark's feelings. Great.

"So anyways, if I'm correct, StrongBoi here is the cause for my... situation." 

StrongBoi blinked at Peter, confused and angry. 

"Look, Stark, we have a reason for exploding into your building," The girl who looked like the leader said. "Oh, do tell," The billionaire invited. "You have been a source of misery for many, many people. And now it's time for revenge. You took away my family, who I loved, and so I will take away who you love. Let's see..." The leader woman pulled some sort of device from his pocket and pointed it at each of the Avengers in turn. Tony's eyes flicked toward Peter minutely, but the woman caught it. Peter deemed her Leader Lady inside his head. "Ah, Spider-Man. Why am I not surprised? You are referred to as the kid of the team."

Leader Lady shifted the device to aim at Peter. "Ma'am, let's talk about this, please-" "Silence!" She yelled, anger seeping into her voice. "I suggest none of you move, or my finger may happen to... slip," She said calmly. "Stark, are you prepared?" The woman continued. "Uh, _no! _" Tony retorted. 

Peter's breath caught in his throat as he saw the woman flip the switch. Then press a button. The device emitted a beeping sound, then stopped. 

Leader Lady stared at him expectantly. 

He stared at Leader Lady.

She stared at him. 

"Oh, owww, the pain! Oh no!!! Oh, somebody help me!" Peter wailed melodramatically. 

Everyone was legitimately silent and Peter was restraining a laugh. "Ms., I'm afraid that didn't work," He said, smirking. 

The woman frowned. "Well, I'm afraid we're going to have to resort to some... more barbaric means," She said, shaking her head. 

"Look, Leader Lady, I don't know why you assume I mean anything to Mr. Stark. I only just met him today. I think. But I'm sure I mean nothing to him." Did he believe that? Maybe.

"Test him," Leader Lady now spoke to a man with black, glowing eyes. He nodded, and Peter frowned, then felt an odd sensation of his brain being... almost poked at. Peter threw up a mental barrier immediately, and the man blinked. "It seems... it looks like he's telling the truth."

Tony - _Mr. Stark, _Peter corrected angrily - looked like he'd been slapped. He looked nauseous, and Peter dropped his eyes. "Damn it," Leader Lady muttered. "I was so sure... but nobody else here... I suppose, anyways, Stark, that you don't want to be responsible for the death of this young hero?" 

Peter wanted to slam his face into a wall, but he was still shaky. "Right. Jeff, unsynchronize him." StrongBoi - his name was Jeff? Peter wanted to laugh - strolled forward and pressed a few buttons. Peter relaxed now. Instead of a device, Leader Lady was now holding a gun.

Oh.

Oh, fuck.

That was worse.

"Can we talk about this?" Peter asked, moving forward with his hands in the air. "Not another step!" Leader Lady yelled, shifting to aim the gun at his forehead. 

Peter's Spidey Senses were going off. _Yeah, yeah thanks. I'm in danger. I didn't fucking notice. _

"Right. So, this is normally the part where a supervillain goes on a rant about crap. All I'm going to say is, you killed my family, Stark. This is where I kill yours."

Peter had to act, and fast. He shot a web with the help of his shooters and yanked the gun toward him.

He realized this was idiotic about ten seconds later when about fifteen guns were pulled out and aimed at his head. "Oh, wow, guys, I didn't mean to offend! This gun have sentimental value?" He asked, breaking the gun under his foot when he dropped it to the ground.

Tony, a couple yards away from Peter, let out an affectionate sigh. 

Well that hurt.

It wasn't fair that Peter had to forget it.

And it was all these guys' fault. 

Peter threw himself into motion, flipping into the air as bullets fired around him. Natasha, previously frozen from fear for Peter's life, followed him, trying to take down these guys. Then Tony, Clint, Vision, Wanda, Rhodey, Sam... everyone. How the fuck did Peter know these names?

Because now, finally, he believed that maybe he once might have meant something to them.

And that was worth fighting for.

The gang proved hard to fight, considering they all had superpowers. It appeared that Leader Lady could fly, along with a few others. There were super strength people, and even a couple with invisibility. Although, a few rapid-fire webs rendered that ability useless.

The battle lasted longer than Peter predicted, as they had knocked Wanda out of commission, used some electric device to stun Vision, and overpowered Sam. 

Natasha and Peter had teamed up to stay in the game, and they were doing exceptionally well. 

The Avengers were winning. The gang was slowly going down. They had gotten the last member down, finally, but Peter was still on edge. There was something odd about it. 

So when Peter's Spidey Senses went off again, he didn't hesitate to leap toward the source.

Which happened to be Tony Stark. 

In a split second, Peter processed six things that had happened in the span of that same second. One, that guy with a gun wasn't nearly as unconscious as he thought. Two, that gun had been shot. Three, there's some type of fucking vortex coming out of that gun. Four, it was acting like a black hole (with less power and WAY less range). Five, it appeared to have a maximum occupancy rate - as it consumed more and more wreckage, it was slowing down, and not collecting as much. And six, holy shit, Tony was about to be sucked in. "Mr. Stark!" Peter yelled as he hurled himself forward. He shot a web that latched firmly onto the suit's wrist, then Peter grabbed the nearest thing - which happened to be a floorboard, and held tightly. Tony was looking around, bewildered, and then he was being pulled into the vortex. "Shit!" The billionaire yelled. The other Avengers started to run toward the duo, but Peter could tell they were too far away. Peter's fingers were starting to slip, despite their stickiness. "Peter, let go!" Tony yelled desperately. "No, shut up!" "Peter, let me go. Goddamn it, Peter, let go! It's okay! **(Oh fuck i just realized what i did there it was an accident.)**

"I'm not letting go of you, Dad!" 

"Let me fall, Peter, or I swear-" Peter only tightened his grip, desperate. He tried to pull his dad forward, but the weight of Tony and his suit was too great. He slid forward, gripping the edge of the floorboard desperately with one hand. 

And then Natasha was there, red hair falling over her shoulders as she reached down to grip Peter by the arm and help drag him - and Tony - out of the void. The vortex howled as Tony was pulled free...

and then vanished. 

The silence that followed was insane. Peter was looking around, horrified, one hand clutching his head and the other still holding onto the web that had saved Tony. 

"Peter," Tony rasped, running to Peter. "I told you to let go."  
  
Peter only turned to him, smiling sadly. "I would never." 

As Tony reached out to hug him, Peter's senses went off.

Too late. 

A bang echoed through the room as Peter looked up. Pain ripped through his body, originating at his side. "So much for happy endings," Came the now-familiar, mocking voice of Leader Lady. Then a second bang came as she raised the gun again, put it to her temple, and shot it once more.

Tony - no, Dad. Dad was there, yelling at Peter, panic in his eyes. Then Natasha - god, his Mama Spider. How could he have forgotten? And Clint, his Mario Kart buddy, then Rhodey, Bruce, two people he could always trust to talk to. Steve, and Bucky, the two people who would train with him until Peter was exhausted but then they'd make cookies and talk until dark. 

Shit, how much harm had he caused when he had amnesia?

Peter reached down to touch his side, and when he lifted his hands up to his face, they came away bloody. "Well fuck, I can't believe you've done this," Peter said, dazed. "Peter - Peter! Fuck, look at me!" Tony was yelling. "D-dad," Peter said, coughing. "Peter, shut up. Don't try to talk right now." "I... r-remember..." He managed. "Did I not say shut up??? Bruce, how fast can you get Med Bay ready?" 

****-.-.-.-.-

Tony stood beside his son - who was still somehow fucking standing-, frantically trying to stop the bleeding. He put pressure on the wound, hoping against hope that somehow when he picked up his hands, the bleeding would have stopped. 

Peter clutched desperately at Tony, trying to stay standing. He was repeating one word under his breath, gasping it out against pain. When Tony heard it, his heart broke. His kid was saying "Dad". Saying it like it was the one thing left in the world, like it would fix everything. "Peter, please, let me help you sit down!" Tony begged. Peter opened his mouth to reply, but then his eyes became unfocused for a second. "Peter!" He yelled. 

Peter gave him a helpless look full of fear and defeat, then collapsed to the ground. 

****-.-.-.-.-

"Peter, please hold on," Tony said, reaching toward him. Tony propped him up into a sitting position, Peter saw Natasha kneeling by his other side, as well as the other Avengers, as Bruce was yelling orders into a communications phone to prepare the medical area. Peter's head lolled to the side, and he limply fell back down to the ground. "Hey, Baby Spider," Natasha said, crying. "You're going to be alright, okay? I promise. You're okay." Peter was breathing quickly, trying to concentrate. "Peter, you're the strongest person I know. You can do this," Clint said, touching Peter's shoulder. Steve nodded. "Peter, just hold on. We can help you." 

Peter gasped for air, despite the pain that came with it. He looked directly at Tony. "D-dad," He managed. "I-I'm sorry."

****-.-.-.-.-

It was a horrible day when Peter Parker's heart stopped.

But it was so much better than a regular day when they managed to start it again.

****-.-.-.-.-

Peter blinked his eyes open, seeing, once again, the Avengers around him. "Hey guys," He managed. "Peter," Tony breathed. Then he was there, and Peter knew he was crying but he couldn't care because his dad was there and everything was alright again. And then Natasha and Clint, then Steve and Bucky, Wanda and Vision, Sam and Rhodey, Bruce and Scott, even Thor and Loki were there. 

"Dad," Peter gasped. "I'm so sorry." 

Tony stepped back. "Excuse me?" He asked. Peter's heart nearly stopped again. "I- uh, well," He stammered. "You have nothing to be sorry for," Tony said gently. "You are the most amazing son I could ever ask for, and god, I don't deserve you, but I love you so much." Peter smiled at his dad. "I love you too," He replied. Then Clint started crying, and then they were all crying except smiling at the same time, because hell, they may be dysfunctional and insane, but they were family.

And they all loved each other.


	6. What Could Have Been

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Engame fix-it! 
> 
> Very angsty at the beginning, but it gets SUPER fluffy

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alternate title: A Trip Down Memory Lane
> 
> Endgame Fix-It
> 
> Laura Barton doesn't exist, neither do the kids. Clint went all emo murderer because he lost his makeshift kids (Wanda and Pietro - who's now back and alive, you're welcome)
> 
> Morgan doesn't exist in this one, sorry XD, maybe in a later oneshot.
> 
> May's dead. I'm sorry. This is the first time I've ever killed her off in a oneshot, and it sucks, but I need it for plot convenience soo....
> 
> ya know, oops.
> 
> This is going to be very, very interesting :D
> 
> Angst and then fluff :D

** _Peter's POV_ **

Peter saw Tony on the battlefield, and when the moment came, and he saw the look in the man's eyes, he knew exactly what was going to happen.

With a panicked glance around him, Peter flung himself away from the fighting and toward his mentor, hoping, _praying _that he would get there in time.

Peter shot his webs out, letting them hook onto a small rock structure, and he swung faster than he ever had in his life.

Beams of light were ravaging the side of his mentor, and _Peter could not let that happen._

By the time his feet hit the churned-up ground, he was already at Tony's side, grabbing onto the man, clinging to him.

He allowed his share of the pain to come through to him. Anything to help him. _Anything._

Tony had already begun to snap when he realized that Peter was there, but it was too late. When the fingers of the Iron Gauntlet came together, the older man's eyes were filled with terror.

Now that the moment was over, the adrenaline dying down, Peter realized just how _badly _it hurt. It felt like the dusting all over again - all the molecules and atoms of his body stretching, trying to tear itself apart.

But still he held onto Tony, trying to take more of the damage, seizing the Iron Gauntlet and desperately trying to stop the flow of energy to his mentor.

_Please let him be okay, please, please. I need him to live._

He took more of the pain than Tony, because there was no way Peter was going to just stand there and let his _father figure die in front of his eyes, again._

"Peter..." Tony gasped out through the pain. Peter raised his eyes to meet his, and whispered a small "I'm sorry."

But then it was over, and Peter was flung backward as darkness consumed his vision.  
  
  


** _Tony's POV_ **

When the Infinity Stones were in his hands, he knew exactly what he had to do.

Ignoring the pain surging through his body, he _knew._

Raising his hand to erase Thanos and his army, permanently.

"I am inevitable," The Mad Titan had said, smirking.

Tony opened his mouth to deliver the one line he had to. The one thing everyone needed to know, his lasting legacy on the Earth, the phrase that had been a part of him since getting up on that stage during the press conference after his battle with Obadiah Stane.

"And I... am... Iron Man-"

The last word came out a bit strangled as a weight crashed into him.

_Peter._

_Nononononononono!_

This wasn't supposed to happen!

Tony tried to stop the snap at the last second, but it was too late. Agony surged through his body from the gauntlet, and he heard a small whimper from beside him.

The boy was frantically clutching at him, trying to _protect him. _If that wasn't as inverted as fuck, then what was?

The pain dulled from unbearable to barely within his endurance.

"Peter..." Tony managed, wild with fear.

_This wasn't what I meant to happen._

_Please, don't hurt him._

_I need to be there for him, to help him deal with this._

When Peter slowly looked at Tony, his heart wrenched. His kid was so desperate, so in pain, so _hollow-_

_I wish I knew what he was thinking._

Like the wish had pulled the next words from Peter, the boy whispered a small "I'm sorry."

Peter was flung from him by some force, and Tony was so, so thankful that his kid didn't have to go through the pain anymore, but god, now he was crumpled on the ground, unconscious, looking more at peace than anyone Tony had seen in the last five years and-

Tony belatedly realized that he, too, was falling, collapsing to his knees _too far away _from his kid, the energy of the Infinity Stones dulling now that their use was finished, and he lost his hold on reality and passed out.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Tony slowly opened his eyes, and realized he was not, in fact, lying down.

He was standing in the middle of Central Park.

It seemed calm, but then there was a scream, and people started rushing to get out of the place.

A man held a little girl at gunpoint, yelling at a sobbing woman in front of him.

Tony looked around to search for any triggers to get his Iron Man suit, to help the child, but he had

none.

He opened his mouth to shout, but before he could, there was a telltale _thwip, _and Spider-Man swung onto the scene.

Tony watched with bated breath, too scared to call out in fear of distracting Peter.

Within seconds the man was on the ground, but the gun hadn't been as disabled as Peter thought. He had aimed at the girl, and fired.

But Peter was there, and then he was bleeding a lot through the side, but he clutched a hand to the wound and webbed up the criminal.

Tony, frozen from fear, suddenly snapped back and ran to Peter.

"Kid, kid, are you okay? Let's get you somewhere safe. I'll call for Bruce to get Med Bay ready, and-" The man broke off, realizing he didn't have his phone. 

And that Peter didn't acknowledge him.

"Are you okay, buddy?" The boy asked, kneeling beside the child. "Y-yeah," The girl stammered out, eyes wide with fear. "Thank you- _thank you so m-much!_" The mother was saying desperately, clinging to her child.

"It's not a problem. Stay safe," Peter said, giving them a thumbs up.

The woman had inquired if he needed medical help, which he declined.

"Um, kid? You definitely need medical help. Come on-" Tony reached out to pull Peter toward him, but missed.

He tried again.

Then he realized that he didn't so much miss as his arm went straight through the boy's body.

"Um, what the hell? Peter. _Peter._" Tony exclaimed, fear shooting through his veins.

Peter only stood up, and webbed away.

Tony ran after him, finally stopping next to Peter as he crouched in an alleyway, pulling out his phone. The boy typed in a series of numbers- _that was Tony's phone number._

"Hey," Peter said when the phone was picked up. _"Hey, kiddo. What's up?" _The voice on the other line asked.

That was _him._

_That was Tony, but it couldn't be, he was standing right here!_

"Oh, uh, well, I was on patrol, right?" _"Yeah." _"And there's this mugger dude, okay?" _"Yeah?" _"And I was going to help, because he has a girl at gunpoint, and the mom's crying, right?" _"...yeah?" _"And basically, I got shot in the side."

_"WHAT?? Okay, kid, next time, skip the story, tell me about the fatal wound first. I'll be there in a second. Where are you?"_

Peter paused, looking around. "Umm... around Morningside and West 114th. Near that one statue, of Lafayette and Washington."

And _now, _Tony remembers this night. He was tinkering in the lab when he got a distress call from Peter, saying he'd been shot. If he recalled correctly, this was where Peter violently complained that he didn't need to be picked up.

_"I'm on my way."_

"Mr. Stark! I don't need to be _picked up. _I'm not a baby, you know. I'm perfectly capable of swinging my way over to the compound-"

_"You're capable, but you're also bleeding out. Look up."_

Suddenly a voice echoed through the world. "Peter? Can you hear me?"

But nobody heard the voice but Tony, or else they were all incredible actors.

And then Memory-Tony was there, and bringing Peter over to the compound, leaving Tony standing there confused as fuck, before it went black.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

When he next opened his eyes, he was standing in Peter's apartment.

"Kid?" Tony asked cautiously, glancing around.

No response.

Voices were echoing out of the kitchen.

Tony walked over and peered in to see May, Peter, and an unfamiliar man sitting at the table.

Peter looked younger than Tony had first met him - and, come to think about it, so did May.

"Those bullies aren't bothering you again, right?" The man asked. And in a flash, it came back to him. Tony had seen this man in a picture - it was Peter's uncle, Ben.

There was a quickly stomped down look of pain on Peter's face. "No," The boy said quickly.

May and Ben nodded, satisfied, but Tony knew better. He'd been lied to by the kid so much, he knew all the kid's tells.

Tony decided that whenever he got back from wherever he was, he was going to find that Flash kid and beat the shit out of him.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Peter looked around the hallways, confused.

"Where the hell did I get to?" He wondered aloud. Tony stood by him, confused. What was this memory?

Peter looked around before choosing a direction and seemingly hoping for the best.

Suddenly, the boy let out a small yelp. "Ow!" He gasped, staring at his hand. Peter frowned. "A... a spider?" He asked to himself. Then he squinted. "Why is it glowing like that?"

The boy shrugged and flicked it off - it had died right after the bite.

Shortly after, a man ran up to Peter and asked what he was doing there. Peter confessed that he had gotten lost. Tony followed them as Peter was quietly led back to the tour group, who hadn't even noticed his absence.

Then the boy looked up and gasped. Tony followed his gaze to a sign hanging outside of a room.

_Radioactive Spider Farm_

_Keep door shut at all times._

So that was how he'd gotten his powers.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Tony followed Peter closely as he walked out of the elevator and into his apartment after unlocking the door.

"Hey, May," The boy said, pulling his backpack further up on his shoulder.

Tony blinked as he saw the woman sitting on the couch with someone who had their back to him.

"Hey!" May replied cheerfully. There was a small pause, until the woman asked "How was school today?"

Peter hesitated. "It was okay."

A lie.

"There's this crazy car parked outside-" Peter broke off, eyes widening, as Tony suddenly remembered where they were.

Tony rushed over to Peter, who was staring in shock at the man on the couch.

"Hello, Mr. Parker," The man greeted.

"Um... wha- what are you do- Hey. Um, I-I-I'm Peter," The boy introduced himself, remembering his manners.

"Tony," Memory Tony said, pointing at himself. Peter gave a small, confused smile.

"Wha- what are you... what are you.... what are you doing here?" Peter asked, stumbling over the words.

"It's about time we've met," Memory Tony said.

_Great job, Past Me. Very vague and annoying, _Tony berated himself mentally.

"You did get my emails, right?" Past Tony asked, winking twice.

Peter paused, bewildered. "Right?" The man repeated. "Ye-yeah, yeah. Regarding the..." Peter trailed off.

God, his kid was gullible back at this point in time.

"You didn't even tell be about the grant," May interjected.

"About the grant," Peter said, seizing on the clue and using it, covering up his perplexity with a mask - the kid was a good actor when he tried.

"The September Foundation," Past Tony announced conversationally. "Right," Peter breathed, still sounding dazed. "Yeah. Remember when you applied?" The man continued.

The boy shoved his hands in his pockets. After another pause, he finally said "Yeah."

"I approved," Past Tony said, gesturing at Peter. "So now... we're in business." The man raised his cup of tea.

"You didn't tell me anything, what's up with that? You're keeping secrets from me?" May asked.

Tony, present Tony, inside-some-sort-of-goddamn-memory Tony, mentally facepalmed at his past self for not even considering how this would affect his kid.

The kid.

Okay screw it nobody could hear his thoughts, this was _his _kid, goddamn it.

"Well, I just - I just... know how much you love surprises, so I thought I would let you know... what... anyway, what did I apply for?" Peter asked, quickly changing the subject.

"That's what I'm here to hash out," Past Tony declared confidently. "Ok, hash - hash it out, ok," Peter stammered.

"It's _so _hard for me to believe that she's someone's aunt," Tony said, smirking.

Tony immediately zoned out after this, wondering why he was _flirting _with Peter's aunt, because fuck it, this was _his _kid and he didn't even think that it would hurt or confuse Peter.

A voice interrupted him. "Tony's vitals are steady... he'll make it."

That _definitely _wasn't part of the memory.

He was dragged back into the conversation when Past Tony went to Peter's bedroom and they talked a bit, until he heard Peter's voice, the one that comes out when he _really _does not want to be somewhere or feels incredibly awkward.

"I definitely did not apply for your grant," He said, before being cut off by Past Tony. "Ah-ah! Me first."

Peter muttered out an "ok..."

"Quick question, of the... rhetorical variety," Past Tony said, pulling out his phone. "That's you, right?" He asked, projecting an image of Peter - in his _ridiculous _Spider-Man pajamas - stopping a car theft.

"Um, no. What do you- what do you-" Peter was cut off by Past Tony again. "Yeah." The man flipped the phone around.

"Look at you go," He said, watching as Peter caught a car before it crashed into a bus. "Wow! Nice catch. 3,000 pounds, 40 miles an hour. That's not easy. You got mad skills." Past Tony slowly approached Peter.

Peter, clearly uncomfortable, dodged around the older man to move toward the window. "That's all- That's all on YouTube, though, right? I mean, that's where you found that? Because you know that's all fake. It's all done on the computer...?"

Past Tony ignored this, looking up at the ceiling, before making a face.

Tony zoned out through the parts where Past Tony embarrassed Peter about various things.

When Peter plopped down on the bed, Tony was already beside him. "I love you, Peter," He whispered to the boy who wouldn't hear him. "Everything's going to be okay."

He wished he could put his arm around the boy, but when he tried, it just passed through Peter's body and fell to the bed. Tony sighed, burying his face in his hands.

And that's when he realized it.

All the memories he'd seen, they were from Peter's point of view.

He was _stuck in Peter's memories._

And he had to find a way out. The voices he had heard - the loud, echoing ones - were from people around real-life Peter - but he hadn't heard Peter's voice once.

Something was very, very wrong.

(Was Tony dead?)  
  
  


** _Steve's POV_ **

Steve and the others were all sitting in the room with the bodies.

Tony and Peter - the boy he now knew to be the Spider-Man from Berlin - were laid out on beds in the small, cramped room. Pepper looked so despairing, equally for Tony and Peter. Steve had learned that Peter Parker had been like a son to the two of them.

Another woman, who he had discovered was Peter's aunt, May, knelt at Peter's side.

"Tony's vitals are steady... he'll make it," Bruce announced, looking up in concern from the opposite side of Tony's bed.

Pepper looked over, tears in her eyes, and thanked the man repeatedly.   
  
  


** _Peter's POV_ **

Everything hurt.

And everything's black.

Peter's head hurt horribly, and nothing seemed to stop it.

Sometimes he thought he heard Tony's voice:

_"Kid, kid, are you okay? Let's get you somewhere safe."_

_"You definitely need medical help."_

_"I - you, Peter... Everything- to - okay-"_

Tony's voice fragmented and shattered as Peter fell back in the silence.  
  


** _Tony's POV_ **

It was almost funny, seeing so many memories of him.

Except it was giving him whiplash, so he hoped it would stop.

And then it did.

And Peter was there.

So there were two Peters here - one in front of him, in the memory, chattering excitedly as he and Past Tony worked on the Spider-Man suit. The other one was blurry around the edges, occasionally fizzing out and then refocusing.

"Peter?" Tony asked hesitantly.

Peter #2 - Blurry Peter - looked up at his name.

The other one completely ignored it.

What was so different? Why could this one hear him?

"Kid?"

Peter, the actual one, the one not in the memories blinked at him. Tony broke into a grin. "I know, it's me, your favorite Iron Man, right?" Tony ran over to him and flung his arms around him. He could hug his kid, finally, that small one in the middle of the battle was nowhere near enough. Tony wrapped his arms quickly around the boy, because he just got his kid back and you can be sure as _hell _he wasn't going to let Peter go again.

After what was entirely too short of a time, about 3 minutes, Tony finally pulled away.

"We should probably get down to business," Tony said regretfully.

Peter stared at him. "Um.. okay so basically for a while I've been seeing... your memories. Like, I didn't choose to, but it just kinda... happened."

Peter glitched out for a moment, his body temporarily disappearing before materializing again.

"I don't know what's going on, but it isn't-"

Tony broke off as Peter blurred out again, fizzling into a blank space. He sporadically focused and became indistinct. Between bits of existence, Tony saw Peter reach an arm out to him, looking desperate. And then he faded off to nothingness.

"Peter!" Tony yelled at the space the boy had been standing. "_PETER!"_  
  
  


** _Peter's POV_ **

Peter thought he saw Tony, in the blackness. He was saying something, running toward him.

Peter tried to say something, anything, especially to apologize, but he couldn't force the words out.

When the man started to fade, Peter reached out, trying to catch hold of his mentor, to ground himself, but he was too far...

Then Tony was gone.  
  
  


** _Tony's POV_ **

Tony was about to freak out when he heard the next voice drift in.

"Peter's vitals... they're very sporadic. I... don't know if he'll survive this."

_No._

Tony had to get out of this place.

That's when he saw it.

Something _very _out of place.

A small doorway, without a door. In its place was a whirling vortex.

Was this his escape?

Tony approached it suspiciously, looking around.

Then he stuck his head through.

Another memory.

But this one was terrifying.

Tony turned to step back, to return to the normal ones, but when he looked, it was gone and then the doorway expanded, enveloping the room.

Smoke was filling the air, but Tony could still see well enough. Rubble and rock was everywhere.

"What the hell?" Tony muttered, glancing around. He didn't even _see _Peter.

Until he did.

And he was screaming.

"Hello??" The boy's yell came from _underneath a pile of wreckage. _"Hello?" Peter called again, desperation clear in his voice.

Tony ran to him, kneeling beside the crumpled boy. "Kid, kid, it's okay, I'm here, I love you. You can do this, I believe in you," He whispered after trying to assist Peter with the debris, only to have his arms pass through helplessly.

"Please. Hey, hey, please. I'm down here. I'm down here. I'm stuck. I'm stuck. I can't move. I can't..." Peter broke off into sobbing, and Tony tried to hug him.

Then something happened. Peter fell silent, and he was staring into a puddle, one where his Spider-Man mask lay. A look of determination crossed over the boy's face. He once again strained against the rubble. "Come on, Peter... come on, Spider-Man..." Peter chanted underneath his breath.

"You're doing great, kid. You got this," Tony said encouragingly. Something had changed. Peter stood, straining against the intense weight, lifting the _entire damn building._

Then the boy looked up, directly at Stark Tower, and the scene changed.

"Tony. There was no other way."

Tony spun to see Dr. Strange sitting peacefully on a rock, staring at another Tony solemnly.   
Past Tony's eyes widened, and Tony knew exactly what was about to happen.

No, no, no. He was going to have to relive this, he _couldn't._

But Tony was frozen, half wanting to look away, the other half wanting to run to his kid and tell him everything that he couldn't before he died.

"Mr. Stark?" The small voice. Past Tony turned, terror in his eyes. Tony knew exactly what the past version of himself was thinking.

_No, not you, please, not you. Anyone but Peter. Take me, please, don't make him go through this, I can't let him die. I can't, I can't._

Shock and terror was plain on Past Tony's face. But Peter's was filled with fear and desperation. "I don't feel so good," The boy said, stumbling forward, staring at his hands. Peter raised his eyes to meet Past Tony's. "You're alright," The older version of himself said quickly, voice shaking as he tried to be calm for his kid.

"I don't - I don't know what's - I don't know what's happening, I don't-" Peter fell into the man's arms, beginning to cry as he clutched onto Past Tony desperately.

"I don't wanna go, I don't wanna go, Mr. Stark, please. Please, I don't wanna go. I don't wanna go..." Peter begged, falling to the ground as he couldn't keep himself standing anymore. He was silent for a few seconds until he spoke up again.

"I'm sorry."

And then he was ashes on the wind. Past Tony fell forward, trying desperately to help his kid, to keep him together even if there was no way.

Tony averted his eyes. He didn't want to see how broken he had looked after the event.

He just wanted to leave.

Then it went black again.

Peter was reforming.

He lay on the ground of Titan, ashes slowly collecting themselves and turning into Peter. Tony ran over to him, drinking in the sight of his kid, alive.

"Peter," Stephen said, offering a hand to the fallen boy. Peter accepted it gratefully.

"It's been five years, come on, they need us."

And then Stephen walked to the Guardians, who were starting to reform.

Strange opened a portal. As soon as it was fully open, Mantis assumed fighting position next to Drax, who pulled out his knives. Quill flew in with his guns. Then, finally, Peter swung onto the scene, landing gracefully. His mask receded into his suit and Peter smiled in awe.

Tony almost laughed. It really was a yellow sparkly thing.

Then there was a shifting beneath his feet.

Tony stumbled sideways as the world started to spin. "Peter? Um, Peter? Your brain is doing something!"

There was a feeling of falling, and then he plummeted into an expanse of darkness.  
  


** _Clint's POV_ **

"Guys! Peter has an asystole!" Bruce yelled, panicked.

Clint fell silent from his idle conversation with Steve. He didn't really _want _to talk. He was still mourning Natasha. They were _finally _starting to get somewhere in their relationship, but then Thanos with the grape, Pringle-ass chin had to show up and-

"You're right. No electrical current in his cardiovascular system!" Helen confirmed from her side of the room, successfully distracting Clint.

**(** **Helen's words were m** **y way of defining that lol)**

Helen Cho ran over with a defibrillator as May almost started to cry.

"Administering countershock," She declared. "200 volts."

"Clear!"

They all watched in stunned silence.

"Maintaining asystole. Raising voltage to 400 volts. Clear!" Helen shouted, then placed the paddles on the boy's torso, administering the shock.

The woman exhaled, stepping back. "Successfully depolarized. His heart has been reset," She told Bruce, who nodded thankfully.

Clint only stared, heart thudding in his chest.

_Did he almost just watch a kid die?_

-.-.-.-.-.-

It was only a few minutes later when Tony woke up.

The man had practically shot out of his bed frantically, gasping for breath.

Pepper and Bruce immediately rushed to his side. "Hey. _Hey, _Tony, chill out," Bruce said quickly. Tony slowed down a bit, looking up at the man.

"Oh. Oh - hey, Bruce. What's - what happened?" He asked blearily. The man in question hesitated. "Well, you wielded the gauntlet. Killed Thanos and his army," Bruce began. Recognition shot into Tony's eyes.

"_Peter,_" The man breathed, a terrible mixture of guilt, horror, and anger in his eyes. "He... he saved your life," Pepper said quietly. "Where is he? _Where's my kid?_" Tony asked, starting to stand up.

Bruce hastily moved out of the way, and pointed toward the boy still lying on the bed.

Tony went pale and rushed over.  
  
  


** _Tony's POV_ **

Oh no.

This wasn't how it was supposed to turn out.

Peter wasn't supposed to _be _there. It was supposed to be Tony's job, and his only.

Tears stung the man's eyes as he knelt beside Peter.

"Tony, Tony, this isn't safe, get back to your bed," Bruce implored.

When Tony didn't reply, he felt arms wrap around him and he was taken back to his bed forcibly.

Tony reached out toward Peter's unconscious body, and wanted to cry.

"Peter," He whispered urgently. Pepper stood and wheeled the boy's bed over to him, always knowing what he needed. They all left the room.

Tony pulled the boy up against him and tried not to cry.

"Peter, I'm so sorry. I love you, I didn't mean for this to happen."  
  
  


** _Peter's POV_ **

Something had changed.

It was still black, yes, and quiet, definitely. But Peter felt almost... warm.

He thought he heard Tony's voice in isolated bursts:

_"Peter, I'm... sorry. I... didn't mean... this to happen."_

Peter whispered back in the darkness, despite knowing the man wouldn't hear him.

"It wasn't your fault."  
  
  


** _Tony's POV_ **

_"It wasn't your fault,"_ Tony heard in his head.

The man jerked back, pulling Peter closer in case of danger. Then he realized the voice was Peter's.

But the boy was still unconscious, curled up beside him.

"Peter?" Tony whispered.

_"I'm sorry. This was all my fault. I keep wishing you were here, and it hurts. I miss you. I wish I could wake up so I could talk to you. Now I think I'm going insane, because I know you don't really care and you're not even here, but I'm still talking to you like you could hear me..."_

"Kid, what are you talking about?" Tony breathed, confused. "This was in no way your fault. I miss you too. So much. And I care, probably more than I should, but I love you so much, please, please know that."

_"I feel so stupid."_

"Peter, am I going fucking insane?"

_"I actually thought I heard you a few minutes ago... as if."_

Tony let out a breathless laugh. "Is this really you? Peter?"

_"I guess I might as well talk anyways, try not to go insane."_

Holy shit.

He was hearing Peter _in his head._

"Why can I... hear you?"

_"I always kinda thought of you as a dad, but obviously I'm not that important to you."_

"Kid... I'm so confused. Why would you _not _ be important to me?"

_"But it's okay, because you've made the past year - or, I guess, six years - the best in my life. _

"... yeah?"

_"Well, I hope you're doing okay. I tried to save you... I tried to prevent your death."_

"Well, I tried to prevent your coma, too."

_"Everything's black and everything hurts right now._

"... fun."

_"It's super. I wish I were actually talking to you."_

"Oh, trust me. You are."

Mind-Peter laughed. _"I'm probably going crazy. I don't know what's going on."_

"Kid..." Tony facepalmed.

_"Oh shi- something's happening - I don't - going - I'm sorry," _Mind-Peter said, voice muddled and cut off.

Tony started to ask a question, but he heard nothing.

"What the hell just happened?" He muttered. "I must be going insane."

With that, the man closed his eyes, pulled Peter close to him, and drifted off to sleep.

-.-.-.-

It was the next morning when he woke up to Pepper and Rhodey waiting for him.

"Hey, Tones," Rhodey said, grinning. "Hey," Tony replied, starting to smile for the first time in a while.

Pepper pulled Tony into a hug, crying a bit.

It was a couple minutes until they were able to talk again without bursting into tears.

A few minutes later, Tony was able to get up and face the world.

Reluctant to leave Peter behind, alone, Pepper and Rhodey had to do a lot of convincing to get him to talk to his teammates.

When they finally made it to the kitchen, everyone fell silent. Until Steve breathed a quiet "Oh my god, Tony!" And the room exploded into cheers of relief.

"Miss my beautiful face already?" Tony asked dryly.  
  
  


** _Peter's POV_ **

Peter had never felt so utterly alone.

It's a good thing something was about to happen to change that.

A figure came into view, feminine, and around 5'5".

When she came into clearer sight, Peter blinked in surprise.

It was Natasha Romanoff, the Black Widow.

"Y-you were dead!" Peter gasped in shock. The woman smiled slightly. "I am... I think. And as for you?" Natasha asked. Peter only shrugged helplessly.

"Anyways, I- I'm, uh, Peter Parker."

Natasha smirked. "I'm Natasha Romanoff. Pleasure to meet you."

Peter smiled to himself in awe.

"Nice to meet you too, Ms. Natasha Romanoff Black Widow, ma'am," He exclaimed, stumbling over the words.  
  
  


** _Natasha's POV_ **

Oh no.

She was getting attached.

Natasha allowed herself to smile, for real this time.

-.-.-.-.-

It had probably been a few hours of the two swapping stories, and Natasha was getting genuinely attached to the boy. He was just too adorable.

Peter suddenly broke off, as though he'd heard something. Natasha quickly noticed lines of stress forming on his face, and the way his eyes glazed over. He was trembling, and his breath was speeding up.

_Panic attack._

Something Natasha knew all too well.

She ran directly over to the boy and pulled him into her arms. "Hey, Peter, it's okay, you're okay. I'm here for you." Peter was shaking and crying against her, and Natasha's heart went out to him.

"Can you feel me breathing?" She asked softly. The boy gave her a small nod. "Okay, then breathe with me. Come on. In, out. Just like that. You're doing great."

Peter matched her breathing, and slowly started to stop quivering.

"Th-thanks," He whispered once he was capable. Natasha gave him a soft smile. "It was no problem," She replied gently, hugging him closely.

Peter slowly stopped sobbing, and started to look embarrassed. "I-I'm sorry, I shouldn't have - you shouldn't have had to deal with t-that," He stammered. Natasha silenced him with a look.

"Peter," She said. "I've known you for a total of a few hours, but I already love you and that's insane. I don't ever want to hear you apologize for something out of your control."

A smile broke across Peter's face like sunlight across the ocean at dawn. "Thanks... Auntie Tasha," He tried.

Natasha beamed.  
  
  


** _Tony's POV_ **

He was called back to the hospital room because of Peter.

Apparently, the boy had started thrashing in his sleep.

Tony was running on his way to Peter when he got another call. "Something's... happening. He suddenly calmed down," Helen exclaimed through the phone.

**Guys, i just tried to type microwave instead of phone, somebody get me some sleep.**

"I'm still on my way, keep me updated."

"Well, he's completely calmed down. Breathing is steady now. Vitals are back to normal. We think he was somehow having a panic attack."

Tony's eyes widened. He knew firsthand how shitty those were. But it had only been about a minute and a half, how had Peter calmed down so quickly?

"Peter hadn't reached the height of his attack, but something happened, and he started relaxing. Almost like someone was there to help him... but nobody was."

Tony muttered a curse. What the hell was going on?

"FRIDAY, call Doctor Strange. Make sure he answers."  
  


** _Peter's POV_ **

He'd be lying if he said he wasn't incredibly thankful for his new aunt.

Natasha had helped him through a few panic attacks in the last couple days. They'd started playing games together, even ones Peter would've been uncomfortable playing with his closest friends.

"Ok, so Thor, Steve, and Bucky. Kiss, marry, kill," Natasha said, a gleam in her eye.

Peter thought for a moment. "Well, I have a huge man crush on Thor," He began.

"Who _doesn't?_" Natasha interjected.

Peter giggled. "I'd have to go with marry Thor... hm... honestly, I'd choose Steve but he does the PSAs at my school so I'd kiss Bucky, kill Steve," Peter decided.

"Good decision. I'd agree with marry Thor - he can be really annoying occasionally, but sometimes he seems like the only sane one on the team," Natasha said thoughtfully.

"I've kissed Steve already, and he's a surprisingly good kisser, so I'll kiss him and kill Bucky. Close call, though. Bucky's pretty hot. Shame I'd never consider dating any of them," The woman decided.

Peter pulled one thing out of this. "YOU'VE KISSED STEVE ROGERS?" He screeched. "Yeah," Natasha said nonchalantly. "I need the story!" Peter exclaimed. "I'll tell you after we finish this game."

Peter grinned. "Okay, my turn. Clint, Bruce, T'Challa." Natasha hummed quietly. "Marry Clint," She said immediately, then paused, thinking. "Kiss Bruce. Sorry, but kill T'Challa. He's pretty chill but he can be frustrating." Peter wiggled his eyebrows at her. "Marry Clint, huh, Auntie Tasha?"

Natasha blushed, covering her face with a hand. "I don't-" She began, but stopped when Peter just grinned at her.

"Oooooooooooooh-" "Shut up."   
  


** _Tony's POV_ **

Tony was hearing Peter talk again, but it made _no _sense.

_"_ _I-I'm sorry, I shouldn't have - you shouldn't have had to deal with t-that_ _-"_

_"Truth or dare?" _A pause. _"Is it true that you know how to kill someone 57 ways with a paper clip?" _Another pause. _"61!!!!! That's crazy!"_

_"Well, I have a huge man crush on Thor-"_

_"PSAs at my school so I'd kiss Bucky-"_

_"YOU'VE KISSED STEVE ROGERS?"_

The words were super choppy, like they were in a connection but it was poor.

Tony was sitting in the room where Peter still lay motionless on a bed. Yellow sparks started flying, and one of Stephen's portals slowly opened.

The man stepped out in all his wizard-y glory. "Strange," Tony whispered, standing slowly. "Stark," The man said, nodding curtly.

Stephen went immediately to Peter's side. "Coma," Was the first thing he said afterward. Helen rolled her eyes.

Strange did some weird golden magic shit and looked at Peter again.

"Hm... it's almost as if his consciousness is elsewhere... split between two places." Tony tilted his head, intrigued.

Stephen looked over at him. "Tony, I don't suppose you've been hearing Peter's voice?" He inquired. "Wha- uh, yeah, but I thought -"Tony spluttered, thrown off.

"I see. Part of his consciousness resides in you, the other part... within the Soul World."

Tony paused. "I don't suppose you know how to put his consciousness back into his body?" He asked. Strange glared at him. "I will do some research. For Peter. I will keep you updated," The man said, opening a portal and striding back in.

Tony sighed. 

He'd try to talk to Peter tonight. 

And hope to whatever forces out there that it would work.

** _Peter's POV_ **

Everything was surprisingly chill with Auntie Tasha.

Right now they were playing some game of Nat's, where they took turns guessing what the other was thinking with a couple clues, and if they guessed right, the other person had to share something embarrassing about themselves. 

"Okay, I used to do impressions of each of the Avengers in the mirror because I was a lonely child."

Natasha stared at him, lips twitching as she tried to hold back a laugh.

Peter groaned in defeat. "How am I supposed to win against a spy, Auntie Tasha?" He wailed dramatically. 

"Don't worry, little spider. I love you even more for how adorable you are."

Peter blushed. He wasn't used to having someone tell him they loved him. Or liked him, for that matter. Only May - when she was still alive, Ned, and sometimes, MJ.

_And Tony, _said a tiny voice inside his mind.

Peter told that tiny voice to shut up.

Static suddenly filled his ears, mixed with talking. "Strange. Good to see you're back."

Tony's voice.

"I have the answers. But it will take time."

"Time... one thing we finally have. But do hurry, okay?"

"The most complex part will be retrieving the consciousness from the Soul Realm. It can be done, but... easily messed up."

** _Clint's POV_ **

The funeral for Natasha was scheduled to be in a few days.

They had managed to recover her body, and it was currently lying in a room next to where Peter was.

-.-.-.-.-

Steve returned the stones. He had come back, having returned the stones to their proper timeline, and had looked utterly exhausted.

Bucky only patted his friend on the back. "He saw Peggy," Bucky had confessed a few hours later. "Almost stayed, but he remembered us here. And... Peter. He wanted to be here for him... and-" The man broke off, staring at the ground.

Nobody wanted to say _"Natasha's funeral."_

But the words still hung in the air anyways.

And yet, that day, something strange had happened.

The woman's pulse had started again.

Stephen Strange had come into the room, curiosity clear in his eyes.

"A soul for a soul," The man had murmured underneath his breath. "Interesting."

"What the hell do you mean, 'Interesting'? Can you fix her or not?" Clint demanded, rage sparking in his eyes. "Can you fix _them? _" Tony corrected, stepping forward. 

Stephen smirked.

"Give me a minute."

** _Tony's POV_ **

Stephen did his weird mystical voodoo shit and Wong stepped out through a portal. 

_"What the hell?" _Tony mouthed at Clint.

_"I know right?" _Clint replied silently.

Tony was still hearing brief flashes of Peter's voice.

_"Okay, back to the other game. Thor, Bruce, Loki?"_

_"Okay, but, like, Budapest sounds like a super weird experience. I mean, how the hell did you guys screw up so badly?" _

That one, Tony felt like he was supposed to recognize, but Tony couldn't place it -

_"How am I supposed to win-"_

_"Alright, never have I ever had a dog."_

_"WHAT?? We don't even _know _if we'll ever get back! No way am I doing that dare."_

Tony was broken out of his recollection of Peter's speaking when the two wizards stopped talking. 

They moved Natasha's bed into Peter's room, where they were all standing.

"Wong. Go to Natasha. I will go to Peter. On my count," Strange instructed.

Wong nodded and rushed to the unconscious woman.

"One... two... _three._"

In a synchronized fashion, Wong and Stephen did their magic voodoo shit and formed a type of shield around the two people.

Slowly, a ball of light formed inside the sorcerers' hands and each went into the head of the person they were standing by.

** _Peter's POV_ **

It had been a few days-ish since the static incident.

Peter had blinked back to their weird reality of blankness and Natasha to see the woman kneeling beside him worriedly. "You good?" She had asked. Peter had just nodded blearily. "I thought... I had heard Mr. Stark... and Doctor Strange."

Things had gone back to normal quickly, until Natasha started getting blurry.

"Auntie Tasha?" Peter asked nervously. "Peter?" She yelled frantically, but it sounded almost likes she was underwater. "Hold on!" Natasha called, lunging for him. She flung her arms around him, and Peter clung to her, but it felt like he was being ripped away, and then a blinding light filled his vision.

** _Tony's POV_ **

A wrenching pain seared through Tony's head, and he clutched at it frantically. 

"Tony?" Clint asked, putting a hand on the man's shoulder.

"Something's... happening!" 

There was a long silence as the pain faded.

And then a long exhale from Strange as he stepped back, releasing his shield, as Wong followed suit.

And then Peter bolted upright in bed, eyes panicked. "Auntie Tasha!" He yelled in fear.

Natasha, across from him shot out of her unconsciousness and called out. "Peter?" She asked, looking around wildly.

Tony blinked. "What the hell?"

Clint and Tony exchanged confused looks. Natasha had spotted Peter, threw herself out of bed and rushed over to him. Peter had obviously succumbed to some sort of pain and fell limp onto the bed. 

Tony, unable to hold himself back, ran to Peter's side. "Kid," He breathed thankfully.

Peter stared at him for a moment, shock, confusion, and relief filling his face. "_Mr. Stark,_" The boy whispered. Tony got a little choked up. 

He hardly registered Natasha gasping and standing to go to Clint as she started to cry in relief.

They sat like that for a few moments until Tony realized Peter couldn't really initiate any hug in this state and decided to do the job for him.

Peter flinched away from him, and Tony drew back. "W-what's wrong? Did I move too quickly? Did I hurt you?"

"Nah, Mr. Stark. It's just..." Tony groaned as he realized what Peter was about to say. "It's not a hug. We're not there yet," Peter finished, smirking.

Pietro, leaning against the wall, muttered a quiet "You didn't see that coming?"

"Kid, I'm going back to hugging you and _I swear if you stop me I'm going to kill you,_" Tony instructed, pulling his kid back into an embrace. Peter smiled a bit. "You would never kill me, Mr. Stark. You love me too much," He said, smirking. 

"Damn right," Tony muttered, remembering what he had heard Peter say in his mind earlier that week.

Then he blinked. _What Peter had said in his mind earlier._

"alSO WE NEED TO HAVE A TALK."

Peter's eyes widened. "Whatever it is, I'm sorry-" "Why the HELL would you think I don't care a lot about you?" 

"W-what?" Peter stammered. "I heard you- in your coma or whatever. I love you, Peter. Please don't ever doubt that."

Peter blushed. "But - it j-just doesn't make sense - I thought you really only needed Spider-Man, and Peter Parker was just an annoying side effect."

Tony froze. "Kid," He whispered, stunned. "You are the opposite of annoying. I swear. You are the most amazing child ever."

Peter looked like he was about to cry. "Did I say something wrong?" Tony asked, concerned. "N-no," The boy managed. "As far as I know, you did everything right."

"By the way, I saw a crap ton of your memories," Tony blurted. He didn't do too well with affectionate moments.

"I'm sorry, _what? _"

"Yeah- like, the spider bite, random shit from the past, meeting me, that one time you got shot in the side -" "That was _funny_." "No it _wasn't - _and Oscorp, and stuff."

Peter looked down. "This is..." He looked heavily traumatized.

"Peter?"

"I don't-" "I'm sorry, it wasn't really my _choice, _I don't - Peter, you look really weird. Are you about to cry? Please don't cry. I'm sorry."

Peter turned his head sideways as best as he could. 

"This is so _embarrassing,_" Peter muttered heavily.

Tony smirked, now knowing it wasn't a huge issue. "Nah, a lot of it was super cute."

"Okay, in my coma, what all did you _hear?_" Peter asked suspiciously. Tony grinned evilly. "Nothing you'll want me to say in front of everyone here," He said casually.

Peter froze. He and Natasha traded a look. "Did you hear... anything from Natasha?" He asked. "Only you," Tony replied, shrugging. 

Peter was blushing strongly at this point. Before Tony could continue, however, Pepper shoved him out of the way and hugged Peter tightly. The boy coughed. "Thanks, Mrs. Stark. It's good to see you too," He managed, gasping for air.

"Okay, so what exactly happened while you were unconscious?" Clint asked.

Peter and Natasha shared a mischievous glance. "Well, a lot of stuff happened," Natasha said finally, taking one of Peter's hands and one of Clint's.

** _Peter's POV_ **

It had been a few days since he and Natasha woke up, and he still couldn't move.

Of course, the Avengers were always there to help him, whenever he needed. Especially Natasha, Tony, and Pepper.

But Tony was slowly visiting less and less, and Peter had no idea why.

Was it something that he'd said?

"Hey, Peter. I recognize that look. Did something happen?" Natasha asked softly, sitting beside Peter.

"N-no, thanks though, Auntie Tasha."

Natasha took his hand and smiled gently at him. "It's okay if there's something wrong. You can tell me."

Peter just shook his head silently.

Natasha's smile turned sad. "Well, want to play a game?" She asked. 

Peter started to smirk. "What type?"

"A prank."

** _Tony's POV_ **

Tony knew he wasn't seeing Peter as much.

It wasn't his fault, he just had... business to attend to.

But he was visiting now.

Peter lay on the bed like always, and Natasha was sitting next to him.

They kept bursting into laughter at random intervals, and then nodding or shaking their heads like they were having a silent conversation.

Tony kicked the door open and the two hardly seemed to notice him.

Then Peter glanced in his direction and snickered loudly. Natasha made a _shhh _ gesture at him. Tony narrowed his eyes at the duo.

"Hey, Peter. Natasha," The man said warily, taking a seat.

The two greeted him, and then returned to their silent conversation. Natasha nodded, a sympathetic look in her eyes.

"It's like that sometimes, yeah," Peter commiserated sadly. 

"Can someone tell me what the fuck is going on?" Tony asked irritably. 

"Huh? Mr. Stark, we're just talking," Peter said, confused. "Are you deaf, Tony?" Natasha inquired, crossing her arms.

Tony blinked slowly, before pulling out his phone and texting Clint. _"Natasha and Peter have gone telepathic. Get over here now."_

A few seconds later, Clint's scream of terror sounded throughout the compound.

** _Natasha's POV_ **

They were clueless.

Both Natasha and Peter knew that.

"Idiot," She mouthed at Peter.

Peter grinned at her, which didn't go unnoticed by Tony, who grumbled under his breath. Peter just shot a bright smile at the man, which had him dropping his face into his hands.

Clint ran into the room a few seconds later, Pietro and Wanda trailing behind him. Peter winked at Natasha.

Natasha shot Peter a mock glare. She knew him too well to think he'd spill.

"Avoid eye contact. They'll know," Natasha said in sign language, turning to the side to hide her hands from Clint.

Peter fought back a smile, and Natasha took her cue to nod, then burst into laughter at whatever fake thing they were pretending to talk about now.

-.-.-.-.-

Sadly, the jig was up quickly.

Peter made eye contact with Pietro, quickly breaking it, then looked at Natasha with the most embarrassed look. Natasha started laughing, and Peter followed suit, leaving a very confused Tony and Clint staring at them.

"W-We're not telepathic-" Peter gasped between giggles. "I'm so confused," Tony stated.

Natasha just smirked at Tony. 

She loved her new spider-nephew.

Pietro opened his mouth to say something, but was cut off by Wanda. "I swear, Pietro, if you're about to say 'What, you didn't see that coming?' I will literally murder you."

Pietro shut his mouth.

_"Teenagers,_" Tony groaned under his breath. "Uh, excuse me, I am not a teen. Peter's a teenager. So are Wanda and Pietro. Please include me in your group of annoying people. I'm only fourteen-ish years younger than you," Natasha pointed out quickly. **(I did my research, guys. Natasha was born at some point in 1984, Tony on May 29, 1970.)**

"_Young people,_" Tony amended, tossing his hands up and stalking off after giving Peter a quick hug.

Natasha didn't miss the upset look on Peter's face.

Neither did Clint.

What the hell was Tony doing that was so important that he'd upset Peter over it?

** _Peter's POV_ **

It was another two weeks until Peter was able to stand. And even then, for no more than a few minutes. 

His body had been, apparently, severely damaged in the snap.

Peter was sure it was nothing big.

He had been seeing Tony even less than before, however, and that only increased his certainty that he had done something wrong.

That is, until Peter had dragged himself into the kitchen - barely - to see Tony whistling as he made breakfast.

"You made pancakes," Peter noted, alerting the man to his presence. "What brought that on?" Tony grinned at him, looking more relaxed than Peter had seen the man in days. "Sometimes, when you adopt a kid, you want to make pancakes," Tony replied casually, as though he hadn't just dropped an enormous bombshell on Peter.

"Th-that's - that's great! Oh my god! That's amazing!" Peter spluttered, not expecting that.

"It's you. Sign on the dotted line," Tony said, smacking a couple sheets of paper down in front of Peter.

**(That line will be appearing in a later oneshot ;) )**

"Wha-" Tony tossed Peter a pen.

"Mr. Stark! I don't think that's how adoption works! Isn't there like a whole legal process and-" Peter was cut off by Tony. "Yeah, that's what I've been working hard on the past couple weeks. Sorry I haven't been able to visit, by the way. Court wasn't sure if I could raise a kid." 

Tony paused, raising an eyebrow. "So, you gonna sign or just stand there staring at me?" "Mr. Stark, I'm actually sitting." 

Tony let a small, affectionate smile slip onto his face. "I know, kid. We'll get you healthy yet. Now sign the paper, Peter. That is, if you want to-" The man said, backtracking.

"No- I, I definitely want to- but like, are you sure you want to, uh, adopt me? All my father figures have ended up, well, dying a terrible death, so-" 

Tony sighed. "Kid, we're just going to have to fix that now. I promise you, I'm not going anywhere."

"Well, neither am I, because I can barely walk, you know-"

"I know, Peter."  
  
"Are you sure? Like, 100%?"

"Peter, I've always been 3000% sure."

Long story short, Peter signed the paper.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That was a looooooong oneshot
> 
> I started working on this on Monday, too.
> 
> I was planning a double update but this ended up being so long I couldn't get it done until now. Anyways, hope you enjoyed!
> 
> I feel like the ending was a bit rushed? I dunno. Tell me what you want to see in the comments!!!


	7. Kidnapped

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter is Tony's adopted son.
> 
> Organic webbing.
> 
> this... it isn't what you'd think

Peter strolled out of class, backpack slung casually over his shoulder. He was chatting excitedly with Ned about the new Lego Millennium Falcon the other boy had gotten a few days ago.

"Come over after school today, we can build it!" Ned invited, beaming. Peter grinned. "I will!"

Happy had texted Peter earlier saying that he was unavailable, and Peter would have to take the subway.

So, he and Ned parted ways at the front of the building and left. 

The first sign of something being wrong was the weird black Sedan going slowly down the road. Peter frowned slightly at it, and sped up a bit.

The car accelerated at the same rate.

A few minutes later, it was still following him.

Peter pulled out his phone and started a voice recording.

"Hey, uh, so this may be nothing, but I'm not entirely sure. This car has been following me for a bit, and it's just... not leaving? And I'm just making this because Happy isn't picking me up and I'm on my way to the subway... the windows are tinted and I can't really see inside."

Peter paused his talking to glance back at the car, still following him.

"I'm probably 5 minutes from the subway, at 21st and Queens Plaza... it's busy but they're still keeping up with me. I'm trying to lose them, making weird turns and doubling back, but they're still behind me. It probably can't be a coincidence at this point... I'm going into this alleyway. They can't drive in there..."

Peter darted into a dark gap between buildings.

"I need to get out of sight and then I can climb the wall."

There was a screeching sound as the Sedan parked, blocking the alleyway from the road.

"Okay, so this isn't a coincidence. They blocked the alleyway. Oh god... a man's are getting out. He has a gun, and a taser... there's a few more weapons in his belt."

Peter groaned as the man aimed the gun right at him. "You really - uh, you really don't want to do this," He warned. "Put your hands up," The man intoned.

The man lifted the taser. "You don't want to feel this," He added.

_I already have..._

_But that's Spider-Man, not Peter Parker._

Peter slowly raised his hands in the air, dropping his phone in a quick, hidden movement into his backpack and letting that, too, fall to the ground.

The man slowly approached, keeping the taser aimed at him, and kicked his backpack under the dumpster.

"The watch," The man told him.

The watch had his suit in it, and a tracker.

Peter was silent.

"Take off the watch," The man ordered. Peter unhooked the watch, keeping a careful eye on him, before dropping it, too.

"You can come quietly or we'll do it the hard way," The man said. "Oh, by all means, I wouldn't want to make your kidnapping of me any harder than it needs to be," Peter said, rolling his eyes.

The man looked briefly annoyed. "Then get in the car."

Peter slowly moved toward the front of the alleyway. "Oh, how generic, a black car. What could make it more cliché? A white van? With a sign that says 'free candy inside'?" He inquired, smirking.

His kidnapper sighed. Peter may not be fighting back physically, but he was going to make it hard mentally.

The man flung open the back door and muttered a "Get inside."

Peter stepped in carefully, before lounging on the seat in the most ridiculous way he could think of.

The man sat in the driver's seat and tossed a glare over his shoulder.

"Sit the fuck up like a normal person and strap yourself in," He ordered. Peter grinned. He wasn't too scared of this guy.

"Concerned about my safety? I'm touched!" Peter exclaimed, but clicked the seat belt into place.

"Shut up," The man commanded. "I'm offended. Do you have a problem with me? That's so sad, Alexa, play Despacito," He quoted. "Last chance," The man threatened. "But why? You're kidnapping me, why do I have to shut up during it? I mean, it's not like you-"

Peter broke off as the man pulled out the taser and, without any theatrics, pulled the trigger.  
  
  


**Happy's POV**

It was supposed to be a checkup with a man in the security department.

The meeting had been awfully far away, in Bay Shore.

But, when Happy had gotten there, nobody was present.

He texted the man he was supposed to meet, multiple times, but got no response.

So he texted Tony, because supposedly Tony had set up this meeting.

**Happy**  
where's the guy i'm supposed to be meeting?

**Tony  
**what are you talking about?

**Happy  
**this guy. said you set up a meeting between me and him

**Happy  
**he's in the security department? evan ward?

**Tony  
**happy...

**Tony  
**we don't have an employee by that name

**Happy  
**shit

**Happy  
**what's going on?

**Tony  
**I don't know. Get back here, fast. I have something to show  
Peter. Don't tell him

**Happy  
**... i can't.

**Happy  
**i didn't pick him up. because of the meeting, he said he'd take the subway

**Tony  
**but then he'd be here by now...

**Happy  
**maybe he got held up? call him

**Tony  
**it went to voicemail. you try?

**Happy  
**shit. it did the same thing.

**Tony  
**i'm tracking it. and his watch.

**Tony  
**it says he's in an alleyway by Queens Plaza. and he   
hasn't moved for the last 20 minutes.

**Happy  
**did he get injured doing his patrol?

**Tony  
**maybe? i'm on my way there now.   
  
  


**Tony's POV**

Tony was out the window as fast as possible, suit forming around him. He landed in the alleyway Peter was supposedly in, only to see nothing and nobody.

"Peter?" He called nervously, looking around.

No response.  
  
  


**Peter's POV**

"Oh... ouch," Peter grumbled, dragging his eyes open. He was sitting in a room, with two clunky metal bracelets around his wrists, and two around his ankles.. They weren't doing anything to restrict his movements.

Apart from him, there was two metal chairs, a table, and a bed. "Hello?" He called warily.

Then he cursed himself mentally. Wasn't this what he hated about horror movies? Victims always yelling 'hello' as if the killer or kidnapper was going to reply 'oh yeah, hi, i'm in the kitchen, making a sandwich, you want one?'

Now apparently he saw the logic in that. The person would want to know if the threat was present, and anywhere near him.

And yet.

Peter moved to the table and sat down, waiting for what would probably happen next.

"Hello there, Peter." The man from earlier came in and took a seat, right on cue. "My name is Dr. Ward. Not my real name, but it is what I told your bodyguard, so it will do."

Peter paused. "How do you know about him?" The man smirked. "I have my ways."

"So, let's get down to business," Peter said, leaning forward and balancing his elbows on the table. "What exactly do you want?"

Ward shifted in his chair. "I'm sure you can guess, with you being the son of Stark and all."

Peter was momentarily thrown by the fact that Ward knew this, but didn't let it show.

"So... let's take a wild guess," Peter declared, pretending to think. "You want... a life. Seems like you're in dreadful need of one."

Ward glared.

"No? A shame, too."

At the moment, he was just distracting the man as he took in the situation.

Ward obviously wasn't the richest man, based off of his crumpled suit, being obviously polyester rather than something better. Probably owned a cat, based off of the short white fur on his shoes. Hadn't slept well in a while. The suit didn't fit him well, it was still too big, and he was pretty sure that Ward hadn't run around with Magic Markers recently, despite the clear marker stains on the inside of the pockets. So, it was either an inheritance or he got it pre-owned. Another indicator of the lack of money. He probably worked at a construction site, from the callouses on his hands, and the surprising build. Unless he had taken off a wedding ring, he wasn't married. Plus, white, torn up shoelaces against dark blue shoes. Nobody in their right mind would let someone they cared about go outside with them. So no girlfriend either.

But for now, Peter would focus on the cat.

"Do I get to meet them?" He asked. Ward paused, confused. "The cat," Peter elaborated. "I like cats."

Ward looked shocked, and began to ask _how, _but Peter barreled on.

"Look man, it's obvious you want money, but is there really a situation where this could end well?" He asked. "Yes." "No! No, there's not. You know about Mr. Stark. He's going to find me, and when he does, he's going to literally kill you. I won't be able to stop him."

"Yes, but I will. Because I'll have you at my mercy."

Peter broke off, surprised.

"Let's begin," Ward said, setting up a camera. "Look sad for your dad, yes?"

_No._

Ward pressed the button to start the tape, and began to talk.

"Tony Stark. As you can see," Ward paused, looking back at Peter. "I have-" He was cut off by Peter loudly humming the Mario Kart theme song.

Ward glared. Peter just smirked at him and continued the music.

"Quiet."

"No."

"Okay actually shut up," Ward warned, annoyance clear in his tone.

"No, I don't think I will."

"One moment," Ward said politely to the camera, before turning and leaving the room.

"Hi Mr. Stark! So, as you can see, I'm in a bit of a bad position. Anyways, I was leaving school, right? And I was going to the subway station when this dude pulls up beside me and backs me into an alley and-" Peter broke off as Ward, who had walked back into the room, clapped a hand over his mouth.

"Ew, germs," Peter choked out, leaning sharply away. Ward just rolled his eyes and revealed that he was holding a small gray box in his hand. Peter jumped out of his chair and backed away. "What's that?" He asked, half worried and half intrigued.

"You'll see soon enough. Get back here before I make you," Ward threatened. "No thanks!"

Ward pulled out a remote and pushed a button. A humming sound filled the room, and Peter reached up to cover his ears as it began to hurt, only to realize he couldn't.

The bracelets around his wrists from earlier were producing the humming sound, and as he watched, they slammed together forcefully. Before he could process that, the same thing happened with the bracelets around his ankles.

Peter fell to the ground with a pained whimper, only let out from shock. Ward winced, anxiety clear on his face despite everything, and pressed another button, letting his arm cuffs shoot down to connect with the leg ones. Peter gasped as his knees jammed into his stomach, knocking the air out of him.

Then, they started dragging him painfully across the floor, back to the chair he had jumped out of. Unable to resist, Peter tried pulling out of the cuffs, only to find them too strong.

_Magnets. How had he not thought of that?_

As soon as he had reached the metal chair, they released and only one of Peter's wrists were pulled to slam into the chair.

And apparently that chair was bolted to the ground. That wasn't fun.

"Ouch," Peter groaned, looking up again.

Ward approached with the box, which he held in front of Peter's face. "That seems really unhygienic," Peter observed.

"Don't worry." "Oh, I'm worrying a bit, man. I don't know if this is some weird satanic cult ritual, but -" The man tapped the box twice, and it clamped around Peter's face, effectively cutting off his words.

It was a _gag. _Like the one they had used on Loki back in 2012.

"As I was saying," Ward said, turning back to the camera.

"I have your son." Peter made a face at the camera, then flipped off Ward with his free hand.

"I want five million dollars, in unmarked bills, delivered in a sealed box to the warehouse on the edge of Manhattan. You should know the one. No telling the police, or bringing any defenses. I'll have Peter here with me, and I wouldn't want my trigger finger to get twitchy from the nerves."

Peter rolled his eyes at the camera, shaking his head. Ward took an impatient breath.

"Deliver it in the next 5 days, or your son takes the hit. You'll receive daily updates."

Peter shook his head frantically. With his free hand, he signed _i-h-a-v-e-a-p-l-a-n._

Ward reached over and turned off the camera. "Good job. You definitely put on a show," He said, smirking cruelly as he took off the gag.

"I'm _so _glad you have a passion for theater. Anything else I should know? Are we going to get a routine song and dance number?" Peter asked.

Ward sighed, looking like he regretted everything already. "I can do it for you," Peter offered, straightening up and doing a dramatic twirl.

Well, as much of a dramatic twirl as one can do with one hand attached to a chair.

"If you're broke, and a lonely man, what do you do? Kidnap a kid!" Peter sang.

He did a little musical _doo-doo-doooooo._

"Just yeet a kid into a Sedan! And take him to a warehouse,"

Ward looked more aggravated by the second.

"Why work honestly when you can just make money? By kidnapping a kid!"

"SHUT UP!" Ward roared after a few more seconds of the song.

Peter made a face. "I was just getting to the chorus! Do you want a different song? Did you not like it?"

"No, and no."

"Can I leave yet?" "No."

"Please?"

"No."

"Pleaseeeeeeee?"

"NO."

"Then leave me alone."

"Gladly."

Ward left the room, taking the camera with him, and Peter reached into his back pocket.

Never underestimate someone who sits through hours of engineering classes.

He pulled out a pen and knelt next to the chair. He unscrewed the tip of the pen and the stylus part fell to the ground, revealing a dual screwdriver end. He carefully unscrewed the bolts latching the chair to the floor.

Peter moved over to the bed, dragging the chair with him. Taking a seat, he started to write a note on the wall, describing what had happened in a size so small that it would be hard for someone to see, unless you had Stark Tech.

And the note was in Italian.

Tony had told Peter, a while ago, that his mother was born in New York to Italian parents, and taught him Italian before English.  
  
  


**Tony's POV**

Peter's phone was laid out on the table, and the recording Peter had made was on loop.

After a solid two hours of freaking out, he hadn't been able to find a single thing. Almost all of the traffic cameras had been shot out, and he couldn't track Peter now that his watch and phone had been left in the alley.

But then FRIDAY made an announcement.

"Sir, I just received a message from an unknown source, directly to the center of your database." Tony frowned, confused. "What's in it?" FRIDAY paused. "It appears to be a video file. The subject line is labelled with Peter's name."

"Open it. Play it. Now," Tony gasped out, shocked.

A recording started to play on a screen.

"Tony Stark. As you can see, I have-"

The voice of a strange man standing in front of the screen broke off as the sound of music echoed from behind him.

Tony's eyes immediately flew to the source as the man stepped aside.

Peter was sitting in a chair casually, arms crossed and leaning back.

"Quiet," The man on the screen demanded. "No," Peter replied stubbornly. "Okay, actually shut up," The man instructed. "No, I don't think I will."

Tony watched as the man left, and Peter started to explain the situation, only to be cut off by the man re-entering the room.

Then something happened, and strips of metal around Peter's wrists slammed together, then ones around his ankles.

_His kid _had toppled to the ground and hadn't been able to catch himself. Peter let out a noise like a kicked puppy. Then he was roughly dragged across the floor until he slammed into the chair, letting out a gasp of pain.

Then the man approached and _gagged _his kid.

This motherfucker was going to die.

Then, right at the end, Peter signed something at the camera.

_Ihaveaplan_

'I have a plan'

What was Tony supposed to do?  
  
  


**Peter's POV**

Great.

Peter had sat in the chair for the next couple of hours, before eventually falling asleep.

Clearly it was the next morning, because Ward walked in and woke Peter up.

"Time for another video! Your dad didn't send the money, let's put something at stake now."

Peter's handcuffs started buzzing again and then he was dragged up so that they were connected to the ceiling, legs dangling a foot off the ground.

Ward pushed the start button.

"How's it hanging, Mr. Stark?" Peter called cheerfully as he dangled from the ceiling.

Puns were always fun.

"You might want to hurry up on that money, Stark. If you don't, well... let's just say, as of right now, your kid's just-"

"Hanging out?" Peter interrupted, grinning.

"Just here. But if we have to put a bit at stake, I won't hesitate for things to get more injuring. Would you like to confirm, Peter?" Ward asked.

"Would it be bad to say that I'm hanging in there?"

Ward snickered a tiny bit, before quickly resuming a straight face.

"It's okay, Mr. Stark, I'm fine with hanging around here a bit more," Peter added, smirking triumphantly.

He flicked his gaze over to where he had written the words on the wall.

Ward ended the video with a final warning, and got up to leave after letting Peter fall from the ceiling. "Wait, Dr. Ward!" Peter called, rushing after him. "Can I come with you?" "No."

"Please?"

"Nope," Ward said, opening the door to leave. Peter slid out with him. "Please?" He repeated, standing next to the man.

The man groaned. "Please, Dr. Ward? I'm just trying to do my bestpacito."

"I'm literally begging you to stop," Ward said, sounding desperate.

"Well, how about I get some food? I would kill for some fre sha voca do."

"No."

"An avocado?"

"What?"

"Thanks..." Peter muttered, grinning.

Ward looked through his pockets for the remote, and pressed the button, but Peter refused to let the magnets work and instead used his super-strength to hold them apart, the first time he'd used his powers in the last two days.

Ward looked shock, and pressed the buttons again. It still didn't work. Instead, the magnets tore themselves _out _of the bracelets and fell to the ground.

Peter looked at them, blinking. "Fun. Guess I can follow you for the day."

"Please don't."

\-----_a few hours later_\-----

"... but like all my friends think I would die if I had too many energy drinks, but really there's no scientific proof as to what to happen, I think I'd just go on a sugar high and probably destroy some stuff. Also, did you know that I know Spider-Man? He's probably helping my dad find you right now. Scared yet? I hope you are. You don't seem like you're a person who gets scared a lot. Is that like a mental ability or are you just a really good actor, or-"

"PLEASE SHUT UP!"

Peter had already disabled the gag using his screwdriver pen. The pen had been confiscated after, but the nanotechnology had already been destroyed so it was too late for that.

"Oh, sorry, did you have an issue? Because I'm just not sure about why you would decide to kidnap me in the first place, it just doesn't seem like a good idea, really -"

"Get out."

Peter hid a grin. His plan had worked.

"Sorry?" Peter inquired, making sure he had heard the man right.

"Get out. The door's down the hall and to the right. Just - leave. Go away. I don't ever want to deal with you ever again."

Plan success.

Annoy his way into release.

"Really?" Peter checked one more time.

"I don't ever want to see you ever again. Just go. Bye. Leave."

Peter was out of there in an instant.

_Down the hall and to the right..._

And sure enough, a door was there, daylight shining through. "Finally," Peter breathed, pushing the door open.

There was a small road that Peter turned to start and walk down.

This could be a while.  
  
  


**Tony's POV**

Peter was an idiot.

He wrote _way _too small, and the camera quality of the kidnapper's camera was literal shit.

So, he was searching through all of the abandoned warehouses in New York.

Because evil criminal lairs.

And he was finding nothing.  
  
  


**Peter's POV**

Peter had been walking for about an hour when he finally found the first sign of the city. They had traveled far, but now it meant that he could try and find his way back.

Looking around, he realized he was somewhere on Riker's Island, and it would likely be about 2 hours before he could get back to Queens by foot.

Thankfully, he didn't have to go by foot.

After half an hour of looking around, Peter finally found a drug store where they were selling rip-off Spider-Man masks.

Then he realized he had no money on him.

This was fantastic.  
  
  


**Tony's POV**

It was like Peter had disappeared off of the face of the planet. There were no records, no leads of where he had went apart from the address of the one warehouse, which was empty. Tony had checked multiple times.

He had no idea what to do.

All of the Avengers were on the case. Natasha was noticeably upset, which was new to Tony. She was way too good at hiding her emotions.  
  
  


**Peter's POV**

Peter had made a street bet that he could beat someone in a race, and he had easily won. So, with the money he won, he bought the mask and ran into an alleyway to pull it on.

Then he deftly ran up the side of a building and started webbing his way back home. If he was traveling at about 60 miles per hour, he could make it in 20 minutes. But, he'd prefer to make it quicker, so he sped up to about 100.  
  
  


**Tony's POV**

There was nothing, and then there was something.

Spider-Man was presumably spotted over Rikers Island, with only a mask to boast his identity.

However, that was impossible because Tony had the Spider-Man mask on him.

Either way, it was worth checking out.

Before he could, there was a bang at the door as Natasha kicked it down, eyes shining.

"I found him," She breathed excitedly.

\---------

"Traffic cams. Media. Passerby and civilians. I looked into all of those. And I found an account of one teenage boy buying a Spider-Man mask at a drug store and then disappearing. Everything matches up," Natasha announced.

"Well, where's he headed?" "Probably back here, but I don't know the exact route."

Tony was about to speak, but was interrupted by his phone ringing.

Picking it up, he saw it was an unknown number. The kidnapper?

Tony accepted the call.

"Hello?" He asked warily.

"Hey Mr. Stark!" Peter called cheerfully from the other line.

"Kid?" Tony checked in disbelief. "Yep! It's me! How are you doing?"

"Well, a whole lot better _now. _Where are you?" Tony asked. "Well, I was getting to Queens, right? But then I got to this stretch where there's nothing to _do web design on_," Peter said, voice heavy with implication.

"I see. So, Rikers Island, right?" "Yeah! Can you come pick me up? I'm near the bridge, but I can't really do anything because the buildings aren't tall enough."

"Okay. I'm on my way. Whose phone is this, by the way?" Tony inquired. "Oh! This nice lady is letting me borrow hers. I'm going to give it back. See you soon, Mr. Stark!"

"Bye, kid," Tony whispered as the dial tone rang.

Natasha, having heard the whole conversation, beamed. "Let's get going."  
  
  


**Peter's POV**

Peter was sitting, cross-legged with the mask on, near the bridge that went over Bowery Bay.

He was not expecting all of the Avengers to come flying in with a Quinjet.

As they all loaded out, they formed an entire group hug around Peter.

When the Avengers pulled back, Tony inspected for wounds. "That bastard didn't hurt you, did he?"

"Only my pride," Peter commented ruefully.

"He's still going to die for touching my kid," Tony said furiously. "Mr. Stark!" Peter exclaimed. "Nope. Also, you'd think since I officially adopted you, you'd at least be calling me Tony, if not Dad."

Peter just grinned underneath his mask. "Okay, Mr. Anthony!" He said cheerfully. "Excuse me?" Tony gasped. "Did I stutter?" Peter asked.

"You son of a bitch!" Tony managed through his shock. "Mr. Stark, I'd never call you that!" Peter told him, laughing.   
  
  


**Tony's POV**

That was the first time Peter had ever referred to himself as Tony's kid.

He was so proud, he was about to cry.

"Whatever, kid," Tony managed, pulling the kid toward the jet.

"So, how did you escape?" Natasha asked curiously once they were all inside.

Peter smirked. "I literally annoyed my way into release. Turns out old people really hate my rambling."

Clint beamed. "I'm so proud!" He gasped.

"You're Tony's for sure, kid," Rhodey commented, grinning.

That was damn right.  
  



	8. Wrong Number

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So this is an AU where Peter is Spider-Man, but somehow gets Tony Stark's number on complete accident. He has no idea who the person is, but it develops from there.
> 
> Peter designed the homecoming suit and the Iron Spider. He keeps the iron spider in a watch.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger warnings: a bit of graphic violence around halfway through
> 
> Also, a helpful translation for later:
> 
> mr. emoji - Tony  
Nat - Natasha  
Arrow - Clint  
Captain - Steve  
James - Rhodey  
Barnes - Bucky  
Mr. Green - Bruce   
Mrs. Emoji - Pepper  
Bird - Sam  
Magic - Wanda  
Sight - Vision

_Tony's Phone_

*****-***-******  
Ned! I need you to cover for me!  
  


**Tony**  
???

*****-***-******  
I'm doing some web design stuff, you know?  
Just make up a cover story please?

And not about porn. We saw how that worked  
last time.

**Tony**  
Okay, you got the wrong number. Also, you need new friends I think

*****-***-******  
Are you sure you're not  
messing with me?

**Tony**  
I'm not. How did you even get this number?

*****-***-******  
You gave it to me.

*****-***-******  
*Ned gave it to me

*****-***-******  
Who is this?

**Tony**  
Oh shit did you just triple-text?

*****-***-******  
Who is this though

**Tony**  
A person

*****-***-******  
How very specific of you.  
I'll give you a name if you give me one.

**Tony**  
... deal

*****-***-******  
My name's Peter

** _Tony has updated ***-***-****'s name to Peter_ **

**Tony**  
Here's a name: Clint

**Peter**  
Is that your name?

**Tony**  
No, I said I'd give you a name. not necessarily mine.

**Peter**  
😠

**Tony**  
Ha, gotcha

**Peter**  
What's your name?

**Tony**  
Can't say.

**Peter**  
Well, what should I call you?

**Tony**  
The root of all evil

**Peter**  
Like android emojis.

**Peter**  
you're a guy?

**Tony**  
yes

**Peter**  
okay then... Mr. Android? Mr. Text? Actually, Mr. Emoji sounds good

**Tony**  
...

**Peter**  
Alright then Mr. Emoji it is :)

**Tony**  
You're so weird.

**Tony**  
You've gotta get yourself a life.

**Tony**  
It's been a few minutes, you good?

**Tony**  
Peter?

**Tony**  
... you okay?

**Tony**  
well, he must have a life after all.

\---------

_Peter's Phone_

**Peter**  
Sorry about that, mr. emoji!

**Peter**  
i have class

**mr. emoji**  
wait, how old exactly are you?

**Peter**  
tell me and i'll tell you

**mr. emoji**  
I'm 48

**Peter**  
Oh shit

**Peter**  
I'm fifteen

**Peter**  
You're not a internet predator, right?

**mr. emoji**  
i- no i'm not, but if I were,   
you'd be too late

**Peter**  
well, you're not, so I'm good

**mr. emoji**  
and yet that's exactly what an internet predator would say

**Peter**  
are you trying to make yourself seem suspicious?

**mr. emoji**  
nah, just teaching a random kid basic  
survival skills

**mr. emoji**  
didn't your parents teach you this?

**Peter**  
ha, jokes on you, my parents are dead

**Peter**  
get rekt

**mr. emoji**  
oh shit im sorry

**mr. emoji**  
you're an orphan?

**Peter**  
well technically i live with my aunt because  
my uncle is dead, she's my legal guardian

**mr. emoji**  
well then

**mr. emoji**  
i guess i'm here to talk if you need me?

**Peter**  
thanks ig, mr. emoji

\-----_two days later_\----

**mr. emoji**  
i'm bored

**Peter**  
sucks for you mr emoji

**Peter**  
i'm in calc

**mr. emoji**  
haha yeah i keep forgetting that you're a student

**Peter**  
yeah, what are you up to?

**mr. emoji**  
... a meeting

**Peter**  
cool.

**Peter**  
oh shit the teacher sees me hold up

**mr. emoji**  
good luck

**Peter**  
okay i'm good

**mr. emoji**  
nice

**mr. emoji**  
so what are your plans for after school

**Peter**  
whOA there mr. emoji that's a bit stalkerish

**mr. emoji**  
you've learned something, i'm so proud

**mr. emoji**  
i assume you live in new york from   
your phone code  
but like in general,   
what will you do?

**Peter**  
uhhhhh

**Peter**  
go to the deli, study, do some web design, like I said earlier.

**mr. emoji**  
what type of web design do you do?

**Peter**  
uh... just run some stuff on queens

**Peter**  
i mean new york in general

**Peter**  
not that I live in queens or anything

**Peter**  
okay haha just ignore that

**mr. emoji**  
aaaaaand so much for your learning.

**Peter**  
:(

\-----------

**Peter**  
hey mr. emoji

**Peter**  
i'm lonely

**mr. emoji**  
why don't you have like a trillion friends with you?

**mr. emoji**  
you seem like, from your personality, you should

**Peter**  
yeah... i don't have a lot of friends

**mr. emoji**  
Ned, the dude you thought I was,  
I'm guessing is one?

**Peter**  
Yeah, and MJ, not that you know who she is

**mr. emoji**  
cool

**Peter**  
ha, i guess I only have two friends

**mr. emoji**  
*three

**Peter**  
I know how to count, mr. emoji

**mr. emoji**  
clearly you don't

**mr. emoji**  
because I'm your friend too :)

**Peter**  
aww, thanks mr. emoji

**Peter**  
that actually... means a lot. thanks

**mr. emoji**  
any time

\------_one week later_\-----

*****-***-******  
is this Peter?

**Peter**  
yes...? who is this?

*****-***-******  
you can call me Nat

** _Peter has updated ***-***-****'s name to Nat_ **

**Peter**  
nice to meet you? I think? how do you know me?

**Nat**  
let's just say i'm a friend of   
mr. emoji's

**Peter**  
oh, cool

**Nat**  
eh, he's not all he's cracked up to be

**Peter**  
cracked up to be???

**Nat**  
Oh yeah forget I said that he's totally  
not someone you should know

**Peter**  
see, the way you say that makes me feel like  
I should know mr. emoji

**Nat**  
nahhhh

**Peter**  
you're kinda sus, not gonna lie

**Nat**  
haha that's accurate

**Nat**  
i like you, kid

**Peter**  
i like you too :)

**Peter**  
wait i'm not a kid 😔

**Nat**  
yeah, okay small child

**Peter**  
:(

**Nat**  
wanna be in our groupchat?

**Peter**  
your internet predator groupchat?

**Nat**  
:/

**Peter**  
sorry it was a joke Nat

**Nat**  
mr emoji wants me to tell you i'm female

**Peter**  
tell mr. emoji thanks, ms. nat :)

**Nat**  
aww so cute, such a small child.

**Peter**  
:(  
  
  
  


_Peter has been added to "We're a mess"_

*****-***-******  
Who is this guyyyy

**Nat**  
someone you need to know

*****-***-******  
look for the last time, i didn't take your arm!

*****-***-******  
you did! I have footage!

**mr. emoji**  
actually it wasn't him

*****-***-******  
explain before i kill you

**mr. emoji**  
it was me

**Peter**  
I am... so confused

**mr. emoji**  
oh hey kid

**Peter**  
hi, mr. emoji

**Nat**  
hey peter!

**Peter**  
hello ms. nat!

*****-***-******  
but who is thissssss

**Nat**  
this is Peter, a kid who somehow texted mr. emoji and  
ended up befriending him

*****-***-******  
mr. emoji????

**Nat**  
I'll tell u on the other group chat

*****-***-******  
ohhh

*****-***-******  
well, peter, you can call me arrow

*****-***-******  
i will be captain

*****-***-******  
you can call me james

*****-***-******  
i wanted to be james :(

*****-***-******  
you can be JB

*****-***-******  
ew no, call me barnes

*****-***-******  
i'm mr. green

*****-***-******  
i'm mrs. emoji

*****-***-******  
um just call me bird

*****-***-******  
i'll go by magic

*****-***-******  
call me sight

** _Peter has updated ***-***-****'s name to Arrow_ **   
** _Peter has updated ***-***-****'s name to Captain_ **   
** _Peter has updated ***-***-****'s name to James_ **   
** _Peter has updated ***-***-****'s name to Barnes_ **   
** _Peter has updated ***-***-****'s name to Mr. Green_ **   
** _Peter has updated ***-***-****'s name to Mrs. Emoji_ **   
** _Peter has updated ***-***-****'s name to Bird_ **   
** _Peter has updated ***-***-****'s name to Magic_ **   
** _Peter has updated ***-***-****'s name to Sight_ **

**Peter**  
By the way, Mr. Emoji, should I know you?

**mr. emoji**  
see the fact that you decided to type with   
correct capitalization, punctuation, and grammar  
scares me

**Arrow**  
someone's in troubleeeeee

**Nat**  
good luck to you mr. emoji

**Peter**  
Speaking of Mr. Emoji, why do you guys get to   
know my real name but I don't really get to know yours?

**mr. emoji**  
because you got yourself tricked, that's  
why

**Arrow**  
So, Parker, what are you doing?

**Peter**  
see now you're using the "proper" writing

**Peter**  
wait wtf how do you know my last name?

**Nat**  
Peter Parker? I wasn't going to check him

**Peter**  
wtfffffffffffffff

**Captain**  
um language

**mr. emoji**  
oh wow the captain knows some texting lingo?

**Peter**  
the shock in that sentence  
implies that Captain is  
unfamiliar with the internet??

**mr. emoji**  
oh yeah he's oooooold

**Barnes**  
old as dirt

**Captain**  
um you're older than me, Barnes

**Nat**  
they're both ancient

**mr. emoji**  
yeah, coming from the youngest of us

**Magic**  
uh excuse me?

**Sight**  
aren't you forgetting a few?

**Peter**  
how old exactly is everyone? (I'm 15)

**Captain**  
well, let's just say I'm pretty old and  
Barnes is a year older

**Nat**  
I'm 32

**Magic**  
27

**Arrow**  
45

**Bird**  
38

**Sight**  
It's weird

**Mr. Green**  
47

**James**  
48

**Mrs. Emoji**  
43

**Peter**  
ok most of you aren't too bad

**Peter**  
captain, sight, and barnes are a bit sus

**Nat**  
agreed, 100%

\-----_ two days later _\-----

**Peter**  
so where do you guys work?

**Nat**  
a lot of places

**mr. emoji**  
we mainly all work at Stark Industries

**Arrow**  
that's probably the best way to describe it ^

**Peter**  
no WAY! that's so COOL

**Mr. Green**  
the answer is that we work at S.I.

**Mr. Green**  
guys you need to work on   
figuring out how to sound  
less confusing

**Peter**  
thanks mr. green! :D

**Arrow**  
we are pretty cool aren't we?

**mr. emoji**  
i'd have to say we are

**Peter**  
well, if you work at S.I., you'd have to be! i read  
somewhere that only 12% of   
applicants actually get in

**mr. emoji**  
you could probably get in if you wanted to,  
i had a background check run on you

**Peter**  
mr. emoji, that's both very creepy and yet   
surprisingly nice at the same time

**mr. emoji**  
that's the name of my autobiography

\----- _two weeks later _\-----

**Barnes**  
fight me, bird bitch

**Captain**  
language

**Mrs. Emoji**  
boys, play nice or i'll kill you

**Peter**  
guyssssss

**Nat**  
yeah?

**Magic**  
SIGHT GET ME THE FUCKING APPLE JUICE

**Captain**  
language

**mr. emoji**  
what's up, peter?

**Bird**  
Magic you sound a bit angry, is something wrong?

**Magic**  
you know DAMN WELL why I'm angry, Bird

**Captain**  
language

**Peter**  
i'm going to apply for an internship at Stark   
Industries!

**Magic**  
omg Peter, that'd be amazing!

**Nat**  
that's awesome!

**mr. emoji**  
i'm sure you'll get in!

**Sight**  
i'm so proud of you peter <3

**Mrs. Emoji**  
Peter, that's great! I can't wait!

**Peter**  
thanks guys :)

**mr. emoji**  
i'll put in a good word for you

**Nat**  
same

**Sight**  
I will, too

**Magic**  
so will I

**Mr. Green**  
we all will

**Peter**  
thanks for the offer

**Peter**  
but

**Peter**  
i'd rather this be something I do  
myself, because I can do it

**Peter**  
than something that is basically  
given to me by others

**Nat**  
♡

**Magic**  
aww that's awesome

**mr. emoji**  
that's so sweet of you, so precious

**Barnes**  
i wish everyone were as adorable as u

**Arrow**  
Peter you're so perfect

**Peter**  
thanks guys ♡

**Nat**  
just sayin but

**Nat**  
cough, copycat, cough

**Peter**  
:)

\----_a few days later_\-----

**mr. emoji**  
you live in queens, right?

**Peter**  
yeah?

**mr. emoji**  
ever heard of the local vigilante?

**mr. emoji**  
spider-man?

**mr. emoji**  
Peter?

**mr. emoji**  
you good?

**mr. emoji**  
still there?

**mr. emoji**  
I'm gonna track your IP address if you  
don't answer

**mr. emoji**  
hello?

**Peter**  
sorry

**mr. emoji**  
oh thank god

**mr. emoji**  
as I was saying, spiderman?

**Peter**  
*Spider-Man. You're forgetting the hyphen

**Peter**  
and yes, who hasn't?

**mr. emoji**  
me, apparently. until now.

**Peter**  
what brought this on? did he save  
you?

**mr. emoji**  
no, but i'm looking into him

**Peter**  
why?

**mr. emoji**  
seeing if he'd be a good avengers candidate

**Peter**  
???

**mr. emoji**  
for my boss obviously

**Peter**  
ohhhhh

**Peter**  
well, he's a cool dude

**Peter**  
i can't say much about him

**mr. emoji**  
you say that like you know  
him personally

**Peter**  
What?!?! No way!!

**mr. emoji**  
that's your texting tell

**Peter**  
???

**mr. emoji**  
when you're lying, you start  
to type properly

**Peter**  
weirdo stalker much?

**mr. emoji**  
;)

**mr. emoji**  
about spider-man?

**Peter**  
we all have secrets

**Peter**  
i don't know your name, you   
don't get to know my relationships

**mr. emoji**  
kid, I could find out in a second

**Peter**  
but you won't

**mr. emoji**  
... i won't

\----_a few minutes later_\-----

**Peter**  
i'm so nervous

**Nat**  
why?

**Mr. Green**  
need to talk about anything?

**James**  
can i help?

**Peter**  
not really, thanks though

**Peter**  
stark internship interview is today

**mr. emoji**  
oooooooo

**Mrs. Emoji**  
fun

**Peter**  
correction: terrifying

**Arrow**  
lol

**Bird**  
i believe in you :D

**Nat**  
you'll do great ♡

**Peter**  
thanks guys

**mr. emoji**  
but if you get in, can i   
put a good word in for you then?

**Peter**  
mr. emoji

**Peter**  
really?

**mr. emoji**  
yes, really. did I stutter?

**Peter**  
that was sarcasm, mr. emoji

**mr. emoji**  
oh

**mr. emoji**  
hard to tell over text

**mr. emoji**  
welp, gotta go

**Peter**  
oh okay

**Peter**  
i'm almost at the tower, it's hugeeeee

**Peter**

**Nat**  
how'd you get that angle, kid?

**Arrow**  
???

**Peter**  
yeeted my phone and hoped i'd   
catch it?

**Bird**  
reaaaaaally

**Peter**  
jk lol I'm on one of those like really high  
trains

**Peter**  
what are those called?

**Nat**  
monorails?

**Peter**  
yeah that's it

**Magic**  
do i get to meet you?

**Peter**  
well i hope so :)

**Arrow**  
M A G I C

**Peter**  
whaaaaaat

**Peter**  
why can't i meet youuuu

**Bird**  
we're classified

**Mrs. Emoji**  
boss would be mad if he knew  
we were texting random people

**Nat**  
we're busy right now

**Barnes**  
we're on a work trip

**Captain**  
we're sick

**Arrow**  
all of the others look stupid

**Nat**  
um excuse me

**Arrow**  
except Nat

**Mrs. Emoji**  
exCUSE ME

**Magic**  
PARDON

**Arrow**  
and magic and mrs. emoji

**Barnes**  
i'm?? offended???

**Arrow**  
Barnes looks extra stupid

**Barnes**  
excuse ME

**Arrow**  
i don't care about your opinion

**Peter**  
see you all gave me different answers

**Peter**  
and that leads me to believe you're lying

**Nat**  
hopefully we can meet you someday

**Peter**  
yaaay

**Mrs. Emoji**  
mr. emoji would be sad that you've apparently  
learned nothing from his internet safety lessons

**Magic**  
oh yeah mr. emoji knows eVeRyThInG about being  
safe

**Magic**  
especially on the internet

**Mrs. Emoji**  
Touché

**Peter**  
gotta go! I'm in the tower!

\----------

** _ Peter's POV _ **

Peter walked into the lobby in awe. A blonde receptionist was sitting at a desk across the room, so he went over to her. "Hello, ma'am," Peter started. "Hello! I assume you're here for the internship?" The woman asked. "Oh! Y-yeah, I am, thank you," He stammered out quickly. "Down the hall and to the left. There's an elevator you can take to floor 53."

Peter thanked her profusely and then followed her directions down the hall. On the way, he bumped into a woman that was a bit taller than him. "Oh! Sorry, ma'am, I didn't mean to-" The woman turned her face toward him and in a bit of shock, he realized it was the Black Widow.

Peter almost had a heart attack - was she going to murder him? Crap, crapcrapcrap...

Instead, she smiled warmly. "It's okay. Don't worry about it, Peter," Natasha said. "Sorry, really." "Don't worry about it," The woman repeated. "Oh. Thank you, ma'am! Have a nice day!" She smiled again. "You too."

It was only once Peter was in the elevator that he realized that she had known his name.

_Well, it's Natasha Romanoff. I can't really be surprised, huh?_

_\--------_

**Peter**  
aaaaaAAAAAAAH

**Nat**  
what happened?

**Peter**  
i ran into Natasha Romanoff in the hallway

**Peter**  
and by ran into, i mean that literally

**Peter**  
it would've been the coolest moment in my life  
if I weren't so embarrassed

**Magic**  
oh oof

**Arrow**  
ha ha good luck with that

**Nat**  
you like the Black Widow?

**Peter**  
well, yeah, the Black Widow's cool

**Peter**  
but it's really like - _Natasha _  
_ROMANOFF_, you know?   
She's amazing! like, the woman behind  
the hero is so cool.   
she's such a queen and MJ, Ned   
and I stan her. She takes   
nobody's crap and stood   
up to the entire world! fearlessly! the first   
female to be among the   
legends of the world! and like wow!   
she's an icon! she doesn't need no  
man! and she's super smart,   
too! like, that whole bit   
with figuring out Loki's   
entire plan? that got posted  
on the internet? and she's got all her bases covered! hacker, badass, entire army in one woman, multitasker, don't mess with   
her 'cause she'll fuck you up! a complete  
legend! she knows what she's doing   
and she's unafraid to do it because of what other people think, and that's one  
of the hardest things to do, like, ever.

**Magic**  
I'm showing this to her

**Magic**  
she's crying

**Magic**  
(in happiness)

**Peter**  
wait nooo

**Peter**  
now i'm embarrassed

**Arrow**  
i love that you wrote a whole paragraph  
solely of you fanboying over Natasha Romanoff

**Peter**  
oh crap the elevator's there, talk  
to you guys later!

**Bird**  
good luck!

**Mr. Green**  
i believe in you!

\------------

** _ Peter's POV _ **

Peter exhaled shakily as he walked into the room.

And holy crap.

Tony Stark was standing RIGHT THERE.

And smiling at him.

"So, Peter Parker, right?" The man asked. "Y-yeah. Nice to meet you, sir," Peter stammered out. "You too, Mr. Parker. So, would you care to step into my office?" "Yes, sir," He managed formally.

"So, tell me about yourself," Tony invited. Trying to put as much confidence into his voice as he can, Peter began. "Well, I attend Midtown High School. I'm really interested in technology, science, and coding, so when I learned about this I thought it would be really fun." Tony nodded slowly, making Peter even more stressed.

"Well, your application was superb, Peter." "I- uh, thank you."

The man smiled a bit. "Feeling a bit anxious?"

Peter grinned. "No, why would I be anxious?" He asked sarcastically.

He regretted the words as soon as they came out of his mouth. Tony, however, smiled more genuinely and laughed.

The interview continued on, with Tony asking more informal questions and Peter doing his best to answer politely, but still slipping up with some jokes.

"Well, thank you for your interview today, Peter. You're certainly a promising candidate. There will be a series of tests tomorrow that can raise your likelihood of winning, if you want to attend?" Tony inquired. "I- I'd love to. Thanks, sir!" Peter responded excitedly.

Tony looked like he was holding back a smile. "Alright, kid," He said, with a tone of something Peter couldn't quite grasp - something alike the way his aunt spoke to him sometimes. "I'll see you tomorrow," Tony finished, failing to fight back the grin.

Peter was extraordinarily confused as he left the office.

And came face-to-face with Natasha Romanoff.

"I'm stealing you," She said, smiling. "Wait, what?"

Natasha guided him down a hallway. "A... person I know showed me something you said earlier. She told me to call her 'Magic' to you." Peter blushed. "Oh! S-sorry if any of that offended you, I-" Natasha cut him off. "No way. That was one of the nicest things anyone's ever said about me."

Peter smiled softly. "It seems like you should get more praise for what you do." Natasha's smile turned sad. "A lot of people see me as a killer, not a hero," She said quietly. Peter hesitated. "Nobody at our school does. You're a huge inspiration to all of us, especially my friends and I. MJ - oh, she's one of my friends that's a girl - totally thinks you're amazing, like I do. The world needs more people like you," Peter told her.

Natasha pulled Peter into a hug. Peter, somehow feeling comfortable with the woman, hugged her back. "Thanks, Peter," She whispered. "It was no problem! It's all true," Peter assured her.

\------_Back in the elevator_\------

**Peter**  
guys i'm freaking out

**Peter**  
Natasha Romanoff is so amazing

**Peter**  
she thanked me for what I said and like  
still was awesome the entire way through!  
Like, is there any way she isn't badass? I think  
not. What a legend.

**Magic**  
i told you she was happy

**Arrow**  
you are so weird, what's your   
voodoo magic?

**Nat**  
I'm not surprised

**mr. emoji**  
me neither. why are you surprised,  
arrow? it's peter.

**Arrow**  
true

**Peter**  
oh, hi mr. emoji! you're back!

**mr. emoji**  
hey kid :)

**Peter**  
ok but i'm so scared

**Peter**  
i feel like I completely messed up  
my interview. i accidentally said something  
sarcastically and joked around a few times   
because he kinda reminded me  
of interacting with you guys and ackkk i'm   
freaking out

**mr. emoji**  
something tells me that the  
fact that you joked with him makes him  
like you more

**Nat**  
tony does love making jokes

**Peter**  
you refer to him as Tony?

**Peter**  
i thought he was your boss??

**Nat**  
he's very approachable. makes us all   
call him tony.

**mr. emoji**  
when you get hired, he'll probably make you  
call him tony as well

**Peter**  
*if

**mr. emoji**  
*when.

**mr. emoji**  
trust me, if he knows his shit, he'll  
know you'd make a great intern.

**Nat**  
3

**Barnes**  
2

**Mr. Green**  
1

**Captain**  
language

**mr. emoji**  
right on time!

**Magic**  
n i c e

**Peter**  
wow i'm not surprised

**Peter**  
but like you really think so?

**mr. emoji**  
Peter, i know so

**Peter**  
thank you guys

**Peter**  
you're like my emotional support group chat

**Nat**  
we'll always be here for you :)

\----_two days later----_

**mr. emoji**  
i told you that you would  
be hired

**Peter**  
well i'm _sorry _for being emotionally  
insecure

**mr. emoji**  
jeez, kid

\----_one hour later_\----

**Peter**  
i think there was a mistake??

**Peter**  
apparently i'm his personal intern??

**mr. emoji**  
it wasn't a mistake. tony saw your scores on everything and immediately upgraded you

**Peter**  
great, set the bar high why doesn't he?

**Peter**  
scare the crap out of me why doesn't he?

**mr. emoji**  
you'll be fine, kid

\----_one week later----_

**Peter**  
idk mr. stark seems to like me but  
i don't know

**mr. emoji**  
don't worry, he's spoken highly of you  
_Read yesterday_

_\-------_

**mr. emoji**  
so, how's school?

**Peter**  
I'm on my way out! The day's finally   
over!

**mr. emoji**  
that's great!

**Peter**  
i know! school felt so  
long todahsdlk;g

**mr. emoji**  
Peter?

**mr. emoji**  
are you okay?

**mr. emoji**  
what happened there?

**mr. emoji**  
did something happen?

**mr. emoji**  
Peter, answer the phone right now

**mr. emoji**  
kid, seriously, are you okay?

**mr. emoji**  
Peter!

**mr. emoji**  
answer before i trace your ip

**mr. emoji**  
i'm tracing it now

**mr. emoji**  
okay so you're still in school, that's good.

**Peter**  
who is this?

**mr. emoji**  
... kid? we've been over this, I'm not telling  
you

**Peter **  
oh, so parker talks to a random stranger on   
the internet

**Peter**  
what a loser

**mr. emoji**  
EXCUSE ME?

**mr. emoji**  
who is this?

**Peter**  
the name's flash

**Peter**  
you can call me "better than you"

**mr. emoji**  
somehow i highly doubt that

**mr. emoji**  
what did you do to peter?

**Peter**  
nothing he won't recover from

**Peter**  
stupid dick

**Peter**  
as for you, i don't want to hear a   
word of this in public. i'll have   
my parents sue your life away

**mr. emoji**  
i'm sorry, do you want to die?

**mr. emoji**  
did you hurt peter?

**Peter**  
i don't know, did I?

** _ Peter's POV _ **

Looking back on it, Peter always wished he could fight back against Flash. But he couldn't risk seriously hurting the boy. So, after being kicked into the lockers, punched multiple times, thrown across the hallway again, and slammed harshly into the ground, he couldn't do anything to resist Flash picking up his dropped phone. A brief thought flashed through his mind of Mr. Emoji talking to the bully. Hopefully nothing would happen.

Peter was probably in trouble when the world started getting blurry. Blood had started to flow down his face and into his shirt.

Okay, Peter. Assess the damage. You've been through way worse. Black eye, almost certainly. Possible broken nose. Abrasion near the temple and another on his chin. Possible concussion or other type of head trauma. There would probably be bruises in a few minutes.

And, apparently, coughing up blood.

Flash leered at Peter. "Loser. Talking to some random guy on the internet. Probably because you have no friends, huh?" Peter squeezed his eyes shut through a pounding headache that had started up.

"You're so worthless. Can't even fight back," Flash sneered, shoving Peter up against a row of lockers and punching him in the face. All his instincts were screaming at him to fight, to throw a punch, to flip the boy into the lockers, but he couldn't.

Stars exploded in front of Peter's eyes when he was slammed harshly into the locker again, again, and again.

Then something happened. Peter was dropped to the ground with a hard _thud. _He heard Flash let out a gasp, and a clatter as a phone fell to the floor. Peter let out a small, wet, cough and let his head rest against the floor. Flash gasped in fear and ran. Peter heard the slamming of his feet against the ground for a while.

Someone leaned into Peter's field of vision. A man with dark brown hair and a goatee. Concern was evident in the man's eyes. Through Peter's swaying world, he couldn't quite place the face. The man was saying his name - _"Peter, Peter!"_

He tried to say something, but nothing came out. Instead the world steadily fell into a deep void of blackness.

\------------

Peter slowly opened his eyes to see a fancy white ceiling above him. He shot up into a sitting position to see that he was in a hospital room, connected to an IV. Tony was sitting in a chair a few feet to Peter's right.

"Oh! H-hi, Mr. Stark. Um... what's going on?" Peter inquired. "You got the shit beat out of you at school," Tony replied bluntly. "Language!" A voice yelled from outside in the hall.

_Ha... sounds like Captain from the group chat... _Peter thought deliriously.

"Oh, great..." Peter muttered, rolling his eyes. "I don't remember much." Tony nodded sympathetically. "I'm not surprised. The school's been alerted to his behavior. I'm glad I showed up in time," The man said. "You... showed up? How did you know?" Tony waved off the question. "I have my sources."

"No offense, but... why do you care, Mr. Stark? I'm just an intern," Peter pointed out. Shock - real, genuine shock - entered Tony's eyes. "Are you kidding? Why do I _care?_ Because you're _my _intern, kid. And you're one of the most amazing people I've ever met. That's why I care. Also, I said it's _Tony._"

Peter frowned. "I've known you for like a week." Tony hesitated. "Well, that's enough time to know. Speaking of. Grade 3 concussion. Multiple abrasions on the face. Broken nose. Severe contusions. Black eye. Dislocated shoulder," The man listed. Peter raised an eyebrow.

Looks like he was mostly right in his earlier diagnosis.

"And, 2 hours later, you're almost completely fine. We set everything to heal perfectly. You definitely still have a bit of a concussion - your words are slurring some, squinting, and you flinch when I speak, indicating some light and sound sensitivity. Your bully is surprisingly weak. The cuts weren't very deep. Bruising is almost gone, thankfully, so the blunt force wasn't too strong. Your nose has set well, and your black eye is healing quickly. You're dismissed from work today," Tony said seriously. "_What!?? _"Peter cried. "I don't want to be!"

Tony looked surprised. "You just got slammed into a wall, multiple times. And you still want to work?" He inquired. "Yes," Peter replied defensively.

Tony broke into a grin. "I knew I chose the right intern." "Don't forget it, Mr. Stark."

"It's Tony."

"Mr. Stark."

"Tony."

"Mr. Stark."

"Tony."

"Mr. Stark."

\------_ the next day _\------

** _You have 27471 new messages_ **

**Peter**  
Wow, I'm gone for a day and you guys send more than 27000 messages?

**Peter**  
mr. stark's not letting me go to school.   
he says i'm "too injured"

**Nat**  
we were worried about u

**Nat**  
mr. emoji said you were beat up?

**Magic**  
Are you okay??

**Arrow**  
who do I need to kill?

**Nat**  
I'll help

**Barnes**  
So will I

**Mrs. Emoji**  
I will as well

**Bird**  
Let's all team up

**Captain**  
Assemble

**James**  
Let's kill a motherfucker

**Sight**  
Agreed

**Nat**  
Oh shit you know the captain's mad when  
he doesn't correct cursing

**Peter**  
haha tru

**Peter**  
I'm fine now, thanks guys. I'm afraid we can't   
kill him, he's still a kid

**Arrow**  
So it's a he!

**Captain**  
Nat, run through the databases on Midtown   
High males. Especially ones who have  
had contact with Peter or forms describing   
issues regarding him

**Nat**  
already on it, Cap

**Arrow**  
as you can see, we'll figure it out   
anyways. wanna tell us instead?

**Peter**  
um

**Peter**  
not reallyyyy

**Nat**  
i've got one. even got security footage.

**Peter**  
isn't that, like, illegal?

**Mr. Green**  
who? i just stopped myself from  
getting too angry

**Nat**  
Eugene "Flash" Thompson. Stupid  
name for a stupid kid. Has some sort of   
grudge against Peter because Peter's so   
much better than him.

**Peter**  
NAT!

**Peter**  
well i guess i'm glad i got the whole squad here

**Peter**  
except mr. emoji

**Peter**  
but guys mr. stark is sitting in the corner of the   
room creepily staring at me. do you think he's   
annoyed that i'm still on my phone?

**Magic**  
i think he's jealous he doesn't know who   
you're talking to

**Peter**  
his phone keeps buzzing lol

**Peter**  
he had to turn it on silence

**Nat**  
well isn't that odd

**Mrs. Emoji**  
so, are we going to kill him?   
i think tony would want to join in

**Arrow**  
let's send a representative

**Bird**  
i'll tell a friend to go get him

\------------

Peter looked up from his phone to see Tony staring at him with an odd mixture of amusement and affection. "Are we going to go work?" He inquired. Tony raised an eyebrow. "We are not _going _anywhere. You're not allowed to leave that bed OR that IV until you're perfectly fine."

Peter made a face at him. "That's not fair."

"Says the kid that got beaten up, huh?"

There was a quick knock on the door, and Sam Wilson stuck his head in. "Sam!" Tony exclaimed, surprised and confused. "Tony! Bird called me. Says he needs you," Sam informed him.

Tony grinned. "Okay, tell him I'm coming," He replied. Tony got up, gave Peter a light hug - "That's not a hug, you're just getting the door for me, right?" Peter inquired, smirking as he reminded the man of one of their first interactions as intern and boss. "Shut up, kid."

Sam gave Peter an appraising look as Tony walked out of the room. "You look like shit, Peter," He said sympathetically. "Really?" Peter asked, widening his eyes. "I didn't notice!"

The man snorted. "Still got that sense of humor, I see." Peter frowned at him. "Sorry?" He queried. "That Tony always tells us about, obviously," Sam elaborated.

"Oh, okay, cool," Peter said, still confused. His Spidey Senses were going off slightly, enough to indicate a white lie. 

Sam gave him a quick grin. "Well, from the way Mrs. Emoji was going off, the kid that's bullying you is gonna die," The man said, then walked out the door.

Peter was struck with the clear impression that Sam Wilson was hiding something.

\---------

**Peter**  
so. you guys called Sam Wilson on me?

**Bird**  
why yes, yes we did

**Nat**  
that is correct

**Peter**  
what was he lying about?

**Bird**  
???

**Arrow**  
what do you mean?

**Peter**  
he was hiding something.

**Nat**  
how could you tell?

**Peter**  
long story

**James**  
do tell

**Barnes**  
^

**Peter**  
just kinda... the way he was acting.  
he seemed to know things he shouldn't have.  
eyes kept darting to the door, didn't make clear   
eye contact, tripped up but had a   
cover story... he was reeeeeeeeeally weird

**Bird**  
don't like the falcon, I gather?

**Peter**  
well he's super cool, obviously. i  
mean, flying around up there facing   
bad guys with a few guns and no special   
powers is pretty insane. he saves a   
ton of lives. he's an inspiration to all   
of the others who don't have   
superpowers!

**Arrow**  
"the others"?

**Peter**  
i meant like me. the avengers were the collective group of superpowered   
people that I was referring to. everyone   
who's not an avenger is "the others"

**Nat**  
i see

**Nat**  
anyways, we're going to kick  
Thompson's ass

**Captain**  
i would say language but

**Captain**  
he deserves it

**Mr. Green**  
^

**Bird**  
100%

**Peter**  
by the way

**Peter**  
who _are _you? because   
if Sam Wilson is Bird's messenger, you have  
to be in a real position of power  
in order to even contact him

**Peter**  
unless...

**Peter**  
your names are kinda suspicious...like if you think about it, Nat could  
be Natasha... Captain would be like  
Steve Rogers... Arrow could be Clint...  
all the names are kinda correlated...

**Arrow**  
what are you implying?

**Arrow**  
that i'm clint barton?

**Nat**  
haha you really think that?

**Nat**  
doesn't that sound a bit far-fetched? that   
you somehow messaged this "mr. emoji" who  
happened to be an avenger?   
which avenger would he even be?

**Peter**  
haha you're right. just my brain running away.  
sorry, not a ton to do when you're sitting on a bed  
waiting to be able to get up again lol

**Arrow**  
oof that sucks

**mr. emoji**  
who would I be?

**Peter**  
mr. emoji! :D

**Peter**  
i dunno? i don't have a specific   
person for everyone??   
i would say mr. stark but there's no way   
he would put up with me  
if he knew what i talked to you about lol

**mr. emoji**  
confidence. you need it. I'm sure that  
he'd still love you

**mr. emoji**  
we're at your school by the way.   
waiting for the eugene kid to show up

**Nat**  
oh look he's here. we're all staring at him   
intimidatingly. i'm using a speech to text thing  
tony made, it's surprisingly accurate

**Peter**  
pleaseeee don't kill him

**Arrow**  
there are worse things than death :)

**Nat**  
;)

**mr. emoji**  
he looks like he's about to cry

**Mrs. Emoji**  
well it's not every day you see this

**Peter**  
i'm watching news coverage...   
why did you bring the avengers?

**Sight**  
The real question is, why not?

**Nat**  
Natasha wanted in when she heard   
of Flash hurting you. She and Tony told  
all the others about you while you   
were unconscious. they all wanted a hand  
in beating up this kid

**Peter**  
that's kinda sweet and kinda creepy

**Mr. Green **  
bet you can't find us on the news

**Mr. Green**  
we're well disguised

**Peter**  
:(

**Peter**  
hey i see my friends! you see the girl   
with the curly hair next to the   
dude with the dark hair?

**Nat**  
i see them. I'm telling  
the avengers.

**Peter**  
Oh! I think i can pinpoint your location.   
ms. romanoff just looked  
over to a corner that's right out of range   
of the camera

**Peter**  
i'm so angry i just want to meet youuu  
:(

**Nat**  
:P

**Captain**  
this is going to be interesting

**Barnes**  
can't wait to fuck this   
kid up

**Captain**  
language

**Barnes**  
:(

**Magic**  
haha this kid thinks he's better than  
you Peter

**Peter**  
i know i'm watching the news, the Avengers  
are live.

**Peter**  
he probably is better than me  
at a lot of stuff if he tried

**mr. emoji**  
i call BS

**James**  
^ you're too polite to admit that  
you're better than him

**Peter**  
oh no i literally can't- flash looks  
horrified. i feel kinda bad for him

**mr. emoji**  
you feel bad for the boy that gave  
you a grade 3 concussion, a dislocated  
shoulder, and a broken nose, among   
other things?

**Peter**  
i should be able to take it

**Bird**  
kid why do you have a guilt complex?

**Bird**  
you're just a kid

**Peter**  
ha just a kid

**Nat**  
you shouldn't have said that

**mr. emoji**  
baaad idea, bird

**Peter**  
just a kid whose parents are dead.   
who couldn't help his best  
friend through the time when his dad died.  
just a kid whose uncle died in   
his arms but he _could have helped_  
_him _if he had acted sooner.

**Peter**  
but i'm just a kid. what do i have   
to be guilty about?  
  


**Bird**  
oh shit... peter, i'm so sorry

**Peter**  
don't worry, mr. bird

**Peter**  
it's not something i go around  
telling anyone

**Sight**  
well, let's kill this guy super quickly.

\---------

Peter sighed as he put down his phone to look at the television. 

"_What _did you just say?" Tony asked, glaring at Flash. The boy visibly lost some of his confidence. "Yeah, that's what I thought," Natasha put in, cleaning out her fingernails with a knife. "Peter is ten times better than you'll ever be," Sam added. "From what I've heard, it would be closer to ten _thousand. _Probably a million," Clint added.

Peter smiled more than he had thought was possible.

They cared about him. Some of them cared despite never having met him.

Peter leaned back in his bed. He was going to have to meet the rest of the Avengers.

\----_30 minutes later_\----

Natasha walked into Peter's room. He shut the laptop quickly and smiled at her. "Hey, Peter," She said, grinning. "I trust you saw the news we made at your school?" Peter laughed. "Hey, Ms. Romanoff. Yeah, I did. The media was having a field day!"

The woman smirked. "It was worth it. The others want to meet you." Peter blinked.

"They're outside the room now. Want me to let them in?" She inquired.

"I- uh, sure, let them in," Peter stammered. Natasha grinned and opened the door, letting a chattering crowd of Avengers in. "Peter!" Clint crowed in delight when he saw him.

"Uh- hi there, Mr. Barton, sir," Peter managed, confused. "So this is the kid that's been turning Tony into a frantic helicopter parent?" He asked excitedly.

Peter almost flinched at the word 'parent' being dropped so casually in conversation. May was technically his "legal guardian", he didn't have a 'parent'.

"Ha, well I hope not," Peter said, laughing. Tony made an injured face. "All of my parents end up dead, so..." He clarified.

Clint choked back a laugh. "Nice. I like you, kid. How are you with a bow?" Peter frowned. He'd never tried. "Well, my aim in general is pretty good," He said hesitantly.

"He is a kid of many talents," Tony announced.

Wanda stepped forward, introducing herself quickly with a grin.

Then Steve Rogers, James Barnes, Colonel Rhodes, Vision, and-

"OH MY GOD! YOU'RE THE-"

"... yeah, I'm the Hulk," Bruce Banner said, a twinge of disappointment clear in his voice.

"THE MOST RENOWNED SCIENTIST OF YOUR GENERATION!" Peter barreled on excitedly. "I've read all your papers on gamma radiation - which, by the way, is amazing! - and the book you wrote on nuclear physics! Those were amazing!" He continued.

Bruce looked incredibly touched. "Th-thanks," The man managed, sounding as though he were about to cry.

Tony stuck his tongue out at Peter. "I thought I was a pretty renowned scientist," He said, mock-sad. "Oh, don't worry, you're pretty cool too," Peter replied, smirking.

\----------

An hour later, they'd made arrangements for Peter to stay at the tower for the night again.

\------------

**mr. emoji**  
so, like we were talking about   
a while ago

**mr. emoji**  
how can i find spider-man?

**Peter**  
He hangs around queens/new york   
at night.that's all we really know. stops muggings, etc.

**mr. emoji**  
are you sure? because the way  
you spoke implied that you knew him

**Peter**  
my lips are sealed

**mr. emoji **  
:(

\----_that night----_

Peter crouched on top of a building, waiting for any signs of crime.

"Hey, Spider-Man," A metallic voice came from behind him. "Mr. Stark!" Peter exclaimed, surprised. "That is, Iron Man?" Tony laughed from inside his suit. "Spidey. You're getting pretty big on the streets," Tony said.

"Well, fighting crime can give you a name," Peter said, widening his eyes (which would transfer to the lenses) to show it was a joke.

"I'm sure it does," Tony said slowly. "Well. I've been sent to ask if you want to join the Avengers."

Peter gasped. "Wait, _really?_ " He inquired. He knew that Tony was considering it - Mr. Emoji had told him that much - but he didn't think it would actually happen!

"It's a big commitment, but we think you'd fit the job," Tony replied, nodding. "Can I have a bit of time to think about it?" Peter asked.

"Sure. Swing over when you decide."

With that, Tony fired up his repulsors and blasted away.

\----_2 days later----_

**Peter**  
okay don't freak out

**Peter**  
but is anyone free? I need your help.

**Nat**  
i'm available. what do you need?

**Peter**  
i kinda have a bit of an inconvenience?

**Peter**  
like you know where cunningham park   
meets with 81st? in queens?

**Nat**  
...yeah?

**Nat**  
what about it?

**Peter**  
i need help? there's an alleyway near there

**Peter**  
just like if you have time, i'm in a bit   
of a bad situation

**Nat**  
if this is something to figure out who  
i am...

**Peter**  
no way tgere are easief wahs to do thay

**Nat**  
you okay kid? i'm on my way.  
your spelling went a bit weird

**Peter**  
jusr a bit dizzu

**Peter**  
i thinj you'll understanf why

**Nat**  
i'm there, where are you?

**Nat**  
oh shit

\----------

Peter was slumped in the corner, a knife sticking out of his stomach. "Hey, Nat," He mumbled as a shadowy figure ran into the alleyway. "Shit, Peter, what happened?"

A feminine voice. The woman was wearing a black hoodie and dark pants. Clearly she didn't want him to see her face. "I mean nothing big, but-" "Nothing BIG? Peter, you were stabbed!" Nat cried. "It happens a lot."

"It happens a LOT?" She yelped. "Yeah - okay, I wouldn't have called you up but I kinda - okay, here, I'll give it to you straight - I'm Spider-Man."

There was a shocked silence. "Of course. Of-_fucking_-course. It's a good thing I was prepared for anything." She knelt down beside him and scrabbled for the bottom of the torn fabric, pulling it apart so she could see the wound.

Nat grasped the hilt of the knife and, with incredible precision, pulled it out, then quickly adding a dressing and putting bandages down over it. "Kid," She muttered, sounding awfully familiar somehow. "Thanks, Nat," He said tiredly, lying back against a wall. "Yeah - no problem, Peter. Shit. I don't- I didn't- you have a healing factor, right? Do you think it needs stitches?" Nat asked quickly. "I don't think so," Peter managed, only slurring a bit. "It should be gone in an hour or two. Thank you... for coming," He gasped out.

"Of course! I couldn't let you sit in an alleyway for a while!" Peter laughed a bit, the motion disturbing his bandages. "I probably... would've bled out if it weren't for you. So seriously... thank you," He whispered.

Nat clasped his hand in hers. "Anytime. Is there anything else you need, or...?" Peter shook his head. "You can go now. I'll check in with you later." Nat smiled at him, still incredibly familiar but he couldn't quite place it in his dazed state...

"Ok, Peter. Make sure you do, or I'm tracking you right back down!"

\-----_ one week later _\-----

**Peter**  
I get to stay the night again!

**mr. emoji**  
awesome! I knew they loved you

**Peter**  
haha that's a bit of a stretch mr. emoji

**Nat**  
we love you :)

**Peter**  
aww, thanks Nat

**Mr. Green**  
Nat's right. You're amazing, don't forget it.

**Peter**  
stoooop I feel like I'm gonna cry

**Mrs. Emoji**  
♥️

**Peter**  
I love all of you :)

**Barnes**  
You too

**Captain **  
Love you

**Magic**  
We love you a ton!

**Sight**  
It seems repetitive to say it now but   
I love you as well.

**Bird**  
<3

**Arrow**  
love ya

**James**  
Love youuuu

\----------

Peter looked up from his phone and walked into the lounge where the Avengers were waiting. He took a chance to send one last text to his friends.

**Peter**  
I'm here! Wish me luck!

As if on cue, all of the Avengers' phones rang, except for Natasha's and Clint's.

Peter looked up, eyes narrowed in surprise.

Steve looked a bit guilty, and Sam was avoiding eye contact. Natasha and Clint looked composed as ever, but the others were all subtly looking away.

**Peter**  
...guys?

They rang again.

**Peter**  
...wtf

Natasha looked down at her phone, which was silenced.

She typed something.

**Nat**  
... surprise?

Peter stared at them in complete silence.

**Arrow**  
haha

Clint started laughing from his place on the couch, finally making eye contact with Peter.

"I told you!" He crowed, smirking triumphantly. "Shut up, Clint," Tony muttered in annoyance.

"What's going on?" Peter asked archly. Natasha smirked a bit at him. "Give it five seconds of thought, маленький паук. You'll come to it."

Peter was pretty sure he already knew.

**Peter**  
So. You guys lied.

**Arrow**  
Well we never actually stated that we weren't   
the Avengers. Just that it was highly unlikely  
that you'd be in the circumstances you are.

**Nat**  
And what happened is certainly   
unlikely.

Peter made a face at the two.

"So. Arrow and Nat, yes?" He inquired. Clint nodded with a grin.

He turned to the rest of the Avengers.

"Bird, and Barnes," Peter said, nodding to the two. "James. Magic and Sight." Wanda gave him a thumbs-up.

"Captain - god, horrible idea. That was _so obvious._" Steve rolled his eyes.

"Mr. Green. You watched me freak out about you and pretended you didn't know me," Peter exclaimed accusingly to Bruce. The man just smiled, amused.

"And... Mrs. Emoji. Mr. Emoji."

Tony spread his hands out helplessly, flashing a grin. "What can I say?" He asked.

Peter made a face at him. "Sorry?" He suggested. Tony smirked at him.

"Well, fuck you guys," Peter said, running for the window.

They were the Avengers, and Nat already knew.

This was revenge.

As Steve called a 'language', Peter opened the window and jumped out, mask forming around him once he was out of their sight.

He shot a web from his wrists and swung over to stick to the side of the wall. Peter climbed above the window, hearing shrieks from inside. They were 91 stories up. No cameras and nobody could see this high.

"Fuck! Somebody call the cops!" Tony screamed. "Deploy a suit! Do _something_ !" Clint was screeching. "Guys, don't _worry_!" Natasha said calmly.

"Look Romanoff, you may not have emotions but we all love the kid and we know you do, too, so don't _say _that we shouldn't worry that the kid is practically dead!"

"Nah, she's right, don't worry," Peter said, poking his head back in as the mask went back into his watch.

Cue screaming as he hopped back inside the building.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The ending felt really rushed on that one, I don't know haha
> 
> Anyways, sorry for the huge delay! I got really involved in wattpad and forgot to transfer over.
> 
> There'll probably be some more updates tonight!


	9. High Stakes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> prank war prank war prank war prank war

Peter didn't know, at the start of last week, that he'd soon be participating in one of the most intense games of rock-paper-scissors by the end.

Let's take this a bit further back.

**-11 days earlier-**

"Pssst. Peter. PETER!" Clint hissed. Peter, senses active as always, jolted awake and flipped onto the floor in one deft movement before crouching in a defensive position.

Once he'd spotted the archer hanging out of the vents, he relaxed. "Clint, what the _fuck?_" He inquired, exasperated. "It's 3 in the morning!" Clint just grinned at him. "Nat and I are starting a prank war. We have Wanda already, we're getting you. Choose one other person and tell us who they are. You have to go give them the news. We'll pick two others."

Peter sighed, annoyance warring with excitement. "Okay, but how many will we have on our team by the end of this?" He asked. "Well, hopefully we'll have seven or eight. But we could take them on with just the four of us!" The man said cheerfully.

Peter shrugged and accepted Clint's outstretched hand to slide into the vents gracefully. "Okay, go choose our teammate!" Clint said, crawling away.

Peter really, really, really wanted to get Tony, but at the same time, he also really, really, really, really, REALLY wanted to prank the man. So, the best option was clearly Loki.

"Hey, Loki - stop screaming it's just me - hey, wanna join a prank war?"

Loki, who had been screaming bloody murder at Peter as he pulled a knife, stopped, noticed that it was, in fact, Peter, and relaxed.

"Peter, why are you in my room? You are aware it is, in fact, 3 in the morning?" Loki asked calmly. "We're doing a prank war," Peter said excitedly. "And we want you on our team. We're making a super overpowered one." Loki started to grin. "Can we get Pietro?" He inquired.

Peter frowned. "I don't think so. We have Wanda and she likes to prank Pietro, so..." Loki smirked. "We have Wanda? Who else do we have?" "Um... Clint, Natasha, Wanda, you, and me. I'm hoping we can get Rhodey and Bucky as well, though." "Excellent. So we won't be murdered by an angry Russian spy/super soldier. And Clint is just about the most childish one around, barring you, so we could have some excellent pranks..."

\----------

A few hours later, it was finally an acceptable time to have breakfast.

The Prank War team - Peter, Loki, Clint, Natasha, Wanda, Bucky, and Rhodey - had gathered in the kitchen and were waiting for their fellow teammates to come up. Everyone typically entered the room at 7:30 am, sharp. However, Peter and the rest had come up an hour early to discuss strategy. They had set up the opening prank perfectly.

Right on cue, every other Avenger walked in. They barely had time to have shock register on their faces seeing the seven people already present until Clint slammed a hand down on a button and an enormous amount of water spilled from the ceiling, drenching them. Tony looked up, fury in his eyes, soaking wet. He narrowed his eyes at Peter, who was giggling. Steve was staring at his hands, trying to get the water out of his hair.

Then Peter pushed another button, and massive amounts of flour was dumped onto them as well.

Pietro looked up murderously and glared at Wanda, who was laughing like crazy. Vision, bemused, simply phased quickly and all of the mixture fell to the ground. Natasha wrinkled her nose immaturely, groaning at his simple evasion of the prank.

"I _hate _you," Sam said, glaring at Bucky, who smirked. Loki was grinning at Thor, who was fixing him with an annoyed look.

Tony met eyes with Peter again and slowly approached. Peter scrambled backwards until his back hit a wall. "Peter..." The man said slowly. "Yeah?" Peter asked nervously. "I'm going to get you for this."

Peter stepped back onto the wall and kicked off, over the man's head to reconcile with his team. Nobody was watching, though, which was a bit sad because it had probably looked epic.

In unison, the entire team stood, shoulder to shoulder. "This is war," They said in sync, then walked out, grabbing a box of donuts to take with them.

As soon as they were out of the room, the entire team broke into laughter.   
  
  


**Tony's POV**

"We are _so _getting them," Tony said, annoyed that ̶h̶i̶s̶ the kid had managed to escape them. "Damn right," Pietro agreed, raking a hand through his hair. "One by one or all at once?" Thor asked. "One by one. Make 'em suffer," Steve replied.

"I want Bucky," Sam said immediately, leaving Steve making a face.

"I call Peter." Tony, Steve, and Scott said in unison. They then glared at each other. "Me first," Tony demanded. Scott narrowed his eyes. "...fine. But then that means I get Clint," Scott conceded. "I will take Loki," Thor announced. "Then that means I get Wanda," Pietro added. "So I get to take Natasha? I don't want Natasha!" Steve declared frantically. "I'll take Rhodey!" Everyone turned to look at Vision. "Um-" The android looked nervous. "I don't want Natasha. I'll just - can I team up with someone?" Everyone turned to look at Bruce, who has never participated in Prank Wars and had managed to avoid the water and flour. "Bruce, tell him he has Natasha." Bruce just shrugged. "Sorry, Vision," He said regretfully.

"I know _exactly _what to do," Tony said, smirking.

**Peter's POV**

Peter was already on edge, looking around for any sign of danger. When nothing happened, he decided to go find the others.

"Uncle Clint?" He called, approaching the door to the common room. His Spidey Senses didn't go off, so he kicked it open and stepped back. Nothing. "Auntie Tasha? Uncle Loki? Wanda? Uncle Rhodey? Uncle Bucky?" He asked. Silence.

Peter entered the room.

"Ooookay. Nobody. That's weird. Something's definitely wrong." 

His Spidey Senses gave a little twinge, and Peter jumped backwards to see a tiny spider.

Oh, how fun.

"Okay, okay, hi there," Peter said, slightly nervous. _'Hi!' _Peter almost cursed, but remembered that he could do that.

"Um, what's going on?"

This was taking so much effort not to scream and run.

_Bro, I dunno. Some dude just kind of threw me in here.' _"What did he look like?" _'Short, weird goatee. Kind of fluffy hair.'_

Tony.

"Great. That's great."

Almost on cue, the other team of the prank war walked in. Peter looked up suspiciously. They took normal places on the couch.

_'Hey, that's the people who were with the guy.' _ "Oh, really?" _'Yeah! Anyways, my name's Jared. What's yours?' _ "I'm Peter, nice to meet you," Peter replied, still scared but a bit less than before.

That was when it started. Pietro let out a screech and pointed at the spider. "OHMYGODITSASPIDERSOMEONEGETITOUTTTTTTTT!"

_'Rude.' _ The spider said.

Tony ran in with a can of insecticide and sprayed it around the room. 

Peter watched in horror as the spider died. Sure, he was slightly terrified of spiders, but once they could talk, it made them seem more normal.

Something happened - Peter's throat started burning and he gasped for air he couldn't get in.

**Tony's POV**

So the prank was this: Introduce Peter to a spider - which Tony _knew _ the boy was terrified of - and then kill it.

Kind of cruel, but almost everyone in the compound was afraid of spiders.

So it didn't really hurt Tony to kill the spider.

But when Peter started choking, that was when the team realized something was wrong.

The insecticide fell out of Tony's hand and finally stopped spraying.

The man ran to the boy's side, who was falling to the ground, clutching at his throat.

Bruce darted into the room. "I got an alert from FRIDAY, is something-" The man broke off as he saw Peter on the floor and the can of insecticide a few feet away. "You guys are such idiots," Bruce muttered as he picked Peter up and left the room. Tony and the others followed, and they shut the door behind them.

Then Peter stopped coughing and sat up.   
  
"I hate all of you," He said hoarsely. "What the fuck was that?"

When it became evident that Peter was not, in fact, horribly hurt, but instead mildly affected by the toxins in the insecticide, everyone chilled out. (Of course, had it been a few more minutes in that room, it may have become serious.)

Tony was still slightly freaked out.

Once the situation was explained to Peter, the boy seemed a bit shaken but shot a mock glare at Tony. "I'm _so _getting revenge on you, Mr. Stark."

**Peter's POV**

"...and so that's how they almost killed me," Peter finished the story finally. "Jeez, kid. To think if they didn't take you out of that room fast enough, you could have died because of that prank," Clint said, concern clear in his eyes. Wanda, whose hair had been turned bright red courtesy of Pietro, frowned. "We need to get them incredibly well now," She announced thoughtfully. 

"And I have just the idea," Peter replied, smirking.

Natasha got him a computer, then crouched next to him with Clint.

"Let's do this."

**Tony's POV - an hour later**

"Mr. Stark!" Peter yelled. Tony looked up suspiciously. Peter came running up to him excitedly. "I wanna go on patrol! Do you want to come?" He inquired.

Tony narrowed his eyes at the boy. "What are you planning?"

Peter's eyes widened innocently, in contrast to Tony's. "Absolutely nothing. Don't you owe it to me after nearly killing me earlier?" He teased. 

"Kid, you _know _that was an accident-" "I know, Mr. Stark. Don't worry about it."

Tony sighed. "I'll come with you."

\---------

Peter was asking for Karen to sweep for crime. He paused, then announced "She says there's a criminal in that building over there."

Tony glanced at the small warehouse. "FRIDAY, zoom in on that."

"Old Man Bifocals protocol activated," The AI replied. 

"What the fuck did you just say to me?"

Peter made a small noise, and Tony turned to glare at the boy. "I swear it wasn't me," He said. It was actually quite convincing, for the kid.

"Let's just go," Tony grumbled, flying onto the scene.

He and Peter split up, and Tony went around to find a few people trading weapons. "Hey guys. Didn't invite me, huh?" He asked, charging his repulsors.

They stared in absolute fear until Tony blasted the weapons. "YEET!" FRIDAY screamed as they were discharged. "I'm sorry, _what? _" Peter snickered over the comms. "Kid, what the hell did you-" Tony broke off at a small gasp of pain.

"Boss, the Bone Hurting Juice protocol has been activated. Mr. Parker has sustained an injury." 

"Wait, the what? Wait, he _what???_ " 

The comms were silent. "Peter, what happened?" "Oof, ouch... my bones," Peter managed. "What _happened?_ " Tony repeated. "Nothing!" "FRIDAY said you were hurt." "No, FRIDAY said the Bone Hurting Juice protocol was activated," Peter replied quickly, if a bit dazedly.

"What. Happened?" "Just a little gunshot wound! Nothing much!" 

"Nothing _much? _Where were you hit?" "Just the side." 

"Just? THE SIDE?"

"FRIDAY, activate autopilot to Peter's location," Tony said frantically. "Engaging Jesus Take the Wheel protocol."

Peter was still conscious enough to laugh. "What the _fuck, _kid?" Tony demanded. 

Tony finally got to Peter, who was basically bleeding out through a gaping hole in his side.

"Kid..." Tony said, sighing. "Don't worry! The bullet went right through!" Peter replied cheerily. "That's- that doesn't make it better!" Tony stressed. "Yeah, but I'm healing. Can we just, ya know, take down this dude, worry about this later?" 

Tony, knowing the strengths of Peter's advanced healing, reluctantly agreed. 

They took the guy down in about five seconds - he had surrendered as soon as he'd seen the two Avengers - but not without the loss of Tony's thrusters. "Damn, that'll need repairing," Tony muttered to himself. "FRIDAY, tell Peter what happened." 

"Activating the I've Fallen and I Can't Get Up protocol."

"Peter, I hate you." "No worries, Mr. Stark!" Peter replied, no longer trying to hide his laughter.

"Okay, FRIDAY, alert the police that we've captured this guy." "Activating the Is That a Weed? protocol."

Peter swung into the room finally, after leaving the guy webbed to a pole outside. "Hey, kid. Still bleeding out, I see." "Yep!" 

"The police are not replying, Boss." "Threaten them. Lightly." "Activating the I Have the Power of God and Anime On My Side protocol."

"Oh, _yes. _Peter. Care to explain?" Tony asked, turning to fix the boy with a glare. "Well, you almost killed me. This was revenge." Tony sighed, rolling his eyes. "I'm going to fix these," He said offhandedly. "Good luck with that. I got two super spies to help me."

"The police are still not replying, Boss." "Threaten them more heavily." "Activating the Honey, You've Got a Big Storm Coming protocol."

Peter laughed. "Police aren't coming? Tell them you're with Spider-Man."

"Tell the police I'm with Spider-Man." "They are on their way." 

Tony made a face. "They like me better," Peter said, sticking his tongue out. "Put on the damn mask, kid," He retorted. "Tell the police that there's a lack of structural integrity and some property damage." "Activating the Back at it Again at Krispy Kreme protocol." 

"Kid, did you make a protocol for everything?" "Everything I could think of."

"Well, let's see... FRIDAY, inform the police of all the man's federal crimes." "Activating the America Explain protocol." 

Tony threw his hands into the air. "Whatever. Let's get out of here." "But Mr. Stark, your thrusters are dead." 

Tony frowned. Peter did, too. "Can you carry me?" He asked reluctantly. 

_"Whaaaaaaaaat? _No! I can lift an entire building off of me, and face off with Uncle Steve, and catch Uncle Bucky's fists, pick up an elephant with ease, but carry a tiny Iron Man suit? No way!" Peter exclaimed sarcastically. "A _building? _" "Uh, that was a joke." "We'll talk about that once we get back," Tony sighed. 

"Let's go!" Peter sang, pulling on his mask and webbing out into the afternoon light. He grabbed Tony's shoulders and jumped out of the window. The man closed his eyes, trying not to scream. "Do you always swing this recklessly?" He asked after the boy let go of him to do a few flips, then webbed him back. "Nah. This is just revenge. I heard you scream when I let go the first time. Karen's recording."

Tony cursed underneath his breath.

When they made it to the tower, Peter put Tony down lightly and let his mask fall into the rest of his suit with the nanotechnology. His hair was messy, and he looked ̶a̶d̶o̶r̶a̶b̶l̶e̶ childlike as he made a face at Tony. 

Tony stepped out of his suit and glared at Peter. "Be sure I will get my revenge," He warned. "Nah, it's someone else's turn. I know you love m- pranking me, but you've gotta share me - and my wrath with the others." "No I don't," Tony said, smirking. "Well, then I'll just go prank Scott and initiate it that way," Peter pointed out.

"Peter!" Bucky shrieked from downstairs. Peter's eyes widened. "Gotta go!" He yelped and flung himself down the stairs.

**Peter's POV**

So it was Sam's bright idea to equip a super strong magnet to the ceiling. Bucky was currently hanging there very unhappily until Peter, with an immense amount of force, tore him away and threw the magnet into the trash. 

"I'm getting him. I am _going _to get him." "Don't worry. Let's get Steve, though. I found some glitter bombs online, and I ordered them in red, white, and blue, so-" "Holy shit, yes!" Bucky crowed. 

Peter grabbed his backpack and pulled out a grenade, packed with sparkly red, white, and blue glitter. "Let's take the vents. We gotta get this done before he hears us."

\--------

"Looks like we get to yeet two birds with one scone," Peter muttered, glancing into the room below them.

Sam and Steve were sparring together in a room. Foolish of them to not look up.

Bucky silently slid the grate up and held it to the side, giving Peter a chance to drop the bomb.

It fell to the ground soundlessly, but Peter heard a telltale _tick, tick, tick _that even Steve couldn't pick up. 

Bucky dropped the grate back over the hole and scrambled back just in time for the _whoosh _and explosion of red, white, and blue glitter that coated the room.

Everything was silent until Sam started screaming in rage. Peter heard a small sound of metal through air, before it got louder and the vent cover fell to the ground, leaving Bucky to fall out and Peter crouching on the edge, holding on with his stickiness and the little bit of ground beneath his feet. 

Bucky was laughing his ass off on the floor as Sam glared at him mockingly. "You are _so _ going down."

\--------

By the end of the first day, Bucky's arm had been painted bright pink. Natasha had - and obviously very reluctantly - a water bottle spilled on her. (She had just smirked at the camera that Vision was watching through evilly. The android was heard screaming as she did so.)

Clint had all his arrows replaced with rubber ones, Rhodey had buckets of red and blue paint dumped on him. Loki had his helmet painted silver and his cape dyed a vivid red to match Thor's.

Peter had fallen victim to a few other pranks from Sam and Steve: finding his room painted red and blue (probably with the leftover from Rhodey's prank), his webshooters on a super high shelf (it pays off to be able to walk on walls and your opponents don't all know that), and all his clothes replaced by Falcon merchandise.

But, in return:

Tony had his protocols changed (and the shit scared out of him by his somewhat-failed prank on Peter), Steve and Sam had been glitter-bombed, Thor had his Pop-Tarts replaced with a nasty concoction Loki had created. _And_ Pietro had his suit equipped with jingle bells from Wanda.

One of the best was that Scott had been signed up to speak for a convention on "Cacti's Negative Effects On Wildlife and the Extermination Required" (that one was a long story).

And, Natasha got her revenge. Vision had been hacked to have his voice sound like an old woman's for who knows how long.

Plus, now Natasha, Clint, and Loki were taking him shopping with Wanda. He was going to buy a _ton _ of their merchandise (plus Captain America's, for messing with Tony) to screw with the other team (but again, mainly Tony).

\--------

"Okay, team. We need a game plan," Clint announced solemnly the next morning. "You're right," Wanda agreed. "We have to find the other team's ultimate weaknesses. Anyone, ideas?"

There was a few moments of silence. "Sam's is the battle between him and Bucky over Steve," Loki said thoughtfully. Bucky pointed at him. "Good idea. We can maybe work the illusion line with your help." 

"Scott's very easily led to missing out on something - being confused," Clint added. 

"Thor's is somewhat the same - not understanding modern customs," Wanda pointed out. "And that's kind of Steve's, too!" Peter exclaimed, enlightened. "Maybe we can pull some sort of modern-day or high-tech or magic 'revelation' to embarrass them," Rhodey said slowly.

"Peter," Natasha spoke up. "Sorry?" Bucky inquired, confused. 

Peter frowned, wondering if he did something wrong or if he missed something she said earlier.

"Tony's biggest weakness," Natasha elaborated. "It's Peter." There was a collective silence. "Auntie Tasha, I don't think he actually cares about me that much-" Peter was cut off by his aunt rolling her eyes. "Yeah, right. He looks at you like you hung the moon. His pride and joy."

Peter blushed, turning a bright red. 

He still doubted the woman's statement.

**Tony's POV - at the same time**

"We need a strategy," Steve announced. Tony smirked. "Here's how it goes: exploit the other team's weaknesses. Use them to our advantage, make devastating pranks that completely knock them out of the park," He replied.

"Brainstorming session!" Sam announced.

"We know that Clint loves the vents. What if we rigged a trap in there?" Scott suggested. "Good idea! See, Scott knows how this works!" Tony exclaimed, grinning. 

"I believe that one of the largest disadvantages that Loki has is his belief that he is better than everyone else," Vision put in. Thor smiled heartily at him. "That's very smart of you! If we put him in a situation where he is not the strongest or the best, it could be amazing!" The god responded.

"Bucky's weakness is Steve," Sam said, certainty clear in his tone. Steve conceded this point with a nod.

"Anyone know Nat's weakness?" Tony inquired. There was a pause. "Well... Nat will kill me for telling you this... but she has a soft spot for cats," Steve muttered. 

"Oh my god. Seriously? What's something we can pull there?" Sam asked, holding back a laugh. "Make her catsuit a literal 'cat' suit?" Scott asked, smirking, as he pulled up printable images of kittens on his phone.

"Peter's..." Tony thought aloud, narrowing his eyes. "Let's see. Nothing too emotionally damaging, he'd actually kill all of us. What's his main weakness?" Pietro asked, frowning.

"Guilt complex the size of the sun," Tony murmured, tilting his head. "Tony," Steve added. "Intense need to apologize..." Sam continued. "Spider-like qualities..." Vision stated. "Aaaaaand embarrassment." Tony finished. "But me? Really, Steve? Somehow I doubt it," The man said, the last sentence laced with sarcasm. 

"So, it's my turn to get Peter," Scott said thoughtfully. "But how should we do this?" 

"FRIDAY, search for files of Peter on the web."

"Boss, I've found one you may like."

**Peter's POV**

Peter had his strategy. Today he was assisting Natasha with pranking Tony, and also doing his own prank on Scott. 

What he did: steal the suit. He had heard from Hope the story about the time when Scott's malfunctioning suit completely messed with his size.

So: he basically hacked the suit, screwed up a ton of stuff, and put it back.

And yet, he was unprepared for the revenge.

Small Scott had finally, after a few hours, gotten back to Normal-Sized Scott. 

And there was a call for all the Avengers to meet in the lounge. 

The team had gathered outside the door and let Peter kick it open. Then Loki made an illusion of them walking through.

Nothing happened, so they entered to see the other team sitting around a sofa.

"How are you, Mr. Stark?" Peter asked nervously. "Oh, Peter, Peter, Peter," Tony said, grinning. "I am absolutely _wonderful._" Peter narrowed his eyes. "That's... good...?" He replied.

"In fact, I was just listening to an _amazing _song." "Mr. Stark, I _know _you love Back in Black. We've been over this."  
  
"Oh, no!" Scott put in. "In fact, we were all listening to it. It's of quite the different variety."

Peter's Spidey Senses were tingling.

**You guys know where I'm going?**

"In fact, it's by this person named Rihanna," Scott continued. Dread came over Peter. "_No,_" He breathed. "What was it called, Tony? Oh, yes. Umbrella?"

**I'll just... link it here. **

**https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1i5DEipIWh4**

Music started blasting over the intercom. A screen lit up on the nearest television. The title flashed along the top of the screen. _"Stark Intern Peter Parker and Potts Intern Michelle "MJ" Jones Lip Sync Battle". _

MJ's song started playing: 24k Magic.

But then Peter's came on: Singing in the Rain.

Scott's team was suppressing giggles and Peter's team was looking slightly amused.

And then the music changed. 

Umbrella.

Let's just say laughter echoed around the room for the next minute or so.

By the time everyone had calmed down, Peter was glaring at Scott and Tony, mouthing _'I will murder you.'_

"Honestly, little spider? I'm proud of you," Natasha said, smiling. "Agreed," Clint added. Loki gave Peter a thumbs up, and Peter accepted a high five from Wanda.

"That was amazing," Bucky piped up. "It was perfect," Rhodey smirked.

Scott's team looked bemused. Apparently Peter turning bright red and not being able to make a full sentence for the next minute was not enough of a reaction for them.

"I will have you know- the reason I did that was because MJ mentioned she was defying gender roles. And I was like: I can't let her beat me." Natasha nodded with pride. "This is why I love you," She said, grinning. "I am 100% giving you dance lessons. That was a 7 at best. The native talent is certainly there. What you need is _practice._"

Peter scoffed. "Eight years of practice not enough?" He asked, smirking. "Not even close," Natasha replied, smiling.

Now that _his _Prank War team wasn't giving him a hard time, he felt much better.

And way more prepared to exact Natasha's prank on Tony.

\----------

So, to go along with the prank, he got stabbed.

See, Natasha told him Loki could just make an illusion for it, but Peter got stabbed on patrol anyways, so it didn't matter.

**Tony's POV**

Tony heard Peter scream in pain from somewhere in the tower.

For a bit, he ignored it. It had to just be another prank, right?

But his instincts got the better of him and he raced toward the sound of Peter's voice.

Peter was sprawled on a bed, blood everywhere and a knife sticking out of his side.

"What the _fuck? _" Tony gasped, racing toward the boy. He was high-key panicking for a good 15-20 seconds when the boy let out a little giggle.

"Ha... Mr. Stark, get pranked."

Tony stared at ̶h̶i̶s̶ the kid, hardly believing his eyes yet knowing Loki was a master of illusions.

"Wow, very _not _funny, Peter. I thought you were actually hurt." Peter let out another small giggle. "Oh yeah, I am," He said quickly. "Uh-huh. When you just told me it was a prank?" Tony inquired, not bothering to humor the boy with a test. 

"No, yeah, I got stabbed," Peter said.

Okay, so the kid _did _sound a bit delirious, but Tony knew that Peter was a great actor.

But his ̶P̶r̶o̶t̶e̶c̶t̶i̶v̶e̶ ̶D̶a̶d̶™ mentoring instincts pressed him to check.

Eventually they won, and Tony reached for the knife in the boy's side. 

When his fingers closed around it, and Tony realized it was a real, solid knife embedded in his kid, he promptly started to freak out. "This is a joke, right? This has to be a joke. Is this, like, a fake knife or something?"

"Nah, Mr. Stark. I probably need medical help."

Natasha ran out of the shadows with a camera hanging from a string around her neck. "PETER!" She shrieked. "You said you'd get Loki to do that as an illusion!"   
  
"Well _yeah, _but I ended up getting stabbed anyways, so I was like: well, it'll make it more realistic." 

"This is _too _ realistic," She lectured. "Got it, Auntie Tasha. Will go with illusion next time. Can someone bring me bandages? I should probably get this knife out of my side."

\----------

To add insult to injury, quite literally, the video was posted online later.

**Peter's POV**

As Peter started to eat his sandwich, something started to feel weird.

His throat was burning. Peter cleared his throat, and swallowed multiple times. Nothing helped. The boy didn't want to insult anyone's cooking, though, so he took another bite. The burning only magnified.

He choked and spit it out, watching grins slowly form on the opposite team's faces. "What the hell?" Peter spluttered. "What was that?" "Language," Steve exclaimed through a tiny smirk.

Scott grinned. "Ah, what do you mean? Do you not like your cucumber and peppermint sandwiches?"

Peter looked at the others, who seemed unaffected. The boy stood up and walked over to Scott, pulling him off his chair and glaring at him. "What was in my damn sandwich?" "Language." Scott just gave him a small grin. "Exactly what was in everyone else's." 

Peter frowned. Either that was complete BS and Scott was lying, everyone was eating bug spray or something, or there was some new spider-related weakness of his. 

Natasha frowned in confusion. "Peppermint!" Clint repeated in the tone of one who has just made an excellent discovery. "Ah, yes, wow, there is peppermint in the sandwich. Get this man a cookie," Bucky said dryly. Pietro laughed, grinning at Clint. "No - he's right. Peppermint repels spiders," Natasha exclaimed, catching on.

Scott busted out laughing, followed quickly by Tony.

"You guys are evil," Peter stated.

When his enhanced senses started picking up the scent of peppermint - which smelled horrible - Peter let out an involuntary hiss and backed to the corner of the room.

**Tony's POV  
**

  
So, Tony wasn't expecting peppermint to be affecting Peter this way.

"Kid, c'mere. We won't make you eat the sandwiches," Tony said, standing up to move toward the boy huddled in the opposite corner of the room.

Peter let out another hissing sound and started to run the other way. Tony realized his fingers still kind of smelled like peppermint from the sandwiches - barely, but it was probably quite strong to Peter.

"Kid," Tony sighed, torn between laughing and sighing. "Get yourself and that demon scent away from me," Peter threatened.

"Peter," Tony said flatly, taking a step forward.

"Stay away, demon!" Peter screeched.

Tony just sighed and left to go back to eating food.

Let's just say that Tony wasn't all that happy when he ended up with temporary, hot pink hair dye in his shampoo bottle and he didn't notice until it was too late.

\----------

It had been about a week and a few days since the beginning of the prank war. 

This was the last day.

It had risen to a peak when Peter had actually gotten: tasered once, shot twice, broken a few bones, and stabbed three times just to screw with the rest of the other team.

They all thought he was faking (he wasn't), except for Tony, who wasn't 100% sure.

They had retaliated by pretending that Peter ended up accidentally hurting Tony.

That had been the downfall of the war.

Scott, Vision, and Sam had set it up so that when Peter, without looking, tossed a wrench to Tony and knocked him out.

Clearly they had underestimated the size of Peter's guilt complex, because the boy had gotten Bruce in a flash, then run out before they could tell him it was a prank. 

Peter then avoided them for the next two days, and started crying when he next saw Tony.

When he learned that it was a prank, he proceeded to continue avoiding them for another two days, except now it was passive-aggressively. 

Also he filled the lab with bouncy balls, hotwired Vision to only be able to talk through Vines, absolutely fucked up Redwing, and destroyed all the coffeemakers in the tower.

Barring those belonging to his team.

After those two days, Peter started talking to Tony again.

It was a lifesaver: it was like Peter had given Tony water in a desert.

He hadn't known how important ̶h̶i̶s̶ the kid's presence in his life had been until it was practically gone (Tony had to stop referring to Peter as his kid).

"Peter, what's up?" Tony asked now, strolling into the lounge. "Eating a family-sized bag of chips," Peter replied nonchalantly. "Peter - that's a single serving," Tony pointed out.

"Everything's family-sized when you're an orphan," The boy replied, shrugging.

Tony choked on air and left the room, Peter laughing behind him.

"FRIDAY, tell Pepper we're officially adopting a kid."

**Peter's POV**

After the most recent disaster - there always is one that ends every prank war - Peter's team decided to call the people together to officially end it.

"But who won?" Scott asked after the discussion. "Obviously us. We caused the prank that caused the disaster," Sam put in. "Uh, yeah, but Peter absolutely destroyed you guys afterwards," Natasha pointed out. "That's true. Tony was sobbing in his room at night the four days Peter was avoiding him," Clint added.

Peter turned a bright red. "Sorry," He stammered to Tony. "No worries, kid. Just stop apologizing." 

"Oh, okay, Mr. Stark. Sorry - ack, sorry - oh crap, I'm sorry - I mean - you know what? I'm just going to stop talking." Peter tripped over his words. Tony chuckled. "Good job, kid," He said, smirking. "Sorry! I mean- okay, back to shutting up."

"I think we won," Sam said. "No, we clearly won," Clint retorted stubbornly.

"I say we put it up to a game of chance," Vision proposed.   
  
"Rock-paper-scissors?" Steve proposed.

Everyone looked upon him with scorn, but eventually agreed.

"Peter and Tony. They caused the fuckening," Natasha said.

Peter exhaled, staring into Tony's eyes. "Okay. Let's do this, D-Mr. Stark," He said, almost slipping.

The man smirked. 

And now Peter was participating in the most high-stakes game of rock, paper, scissors in his life. 

"Rock."

"Paper."

"Scissors."

"Shoot."

Tony threw rock.

But Peter threw paper.

Cue screaming of excitement from his team.

And screams of anger from the other one.

  
  
"Take that, Dad!" Peter crowed.

There was a shocked silence.

Then Peter looked up, panicked.

**Tony's POV**

Tony was internally freaking out.

_HecalledmeDadh_ _ecalledmeDad_ _h_ _ecalledmeDad_ _h_ _ecalledmeDad_ _h_ _ecalledmeDad!_

_YES!_

"Um - sorry!" Peter stammered out.

The silence continued.

"Okay, bye!" Peter screamed, leaping out of the nearest window. Steve let out a terrified yell and ran to the opening. The rest of Tony's Prank War team ran over too.

Tony finally unfroze and ran over to the window with them. 

"Oh my god is he dead?" Pietro shrieked.

(Unbeknownst to them, Peter's team, who Peter had told the truth about his powers, were smirking.)

"Did he just commit suicide out of embarrassment?" Steve asked, eyes wide, clearly in shock.

Tony just leaned slightly out of the window. "It's okay, kid, don't worry about it!" He called. 

Peter poked his head, blushing and messy-haired, down from above the window. 

Steve and Pietro scrambled backwards. Thor gasped in shock. Sam literally screamed and tripped as he backed away from the window. Scott cursed and fell back onto the carpet. Vision yelled a frantic: "This house is a FUCKING NIGHTMARE!" As he flew backwards.

Tony just started laughing. 

"This is why- we win the prank war!" Natasha gasped out between laughs behind him.

Peter slowly climbed back inside the tower, avoiding eye contact.

Tony knelt by his side. "Hey, Peter, I was going to wait to tell you the news, but... I'm going to try adopting a kid. If they agree."

Peter started freaking out. "This isn't another prank, right? Holy shit. Can I meet them? Will they be fun? How old are they? Are they a girl or a boy? I'm so excited! I'm so proud of you, Mr. Stark!" 

Tony frowned. "Okay: you already have, yes, 16, boy, and what happened to Dad?" Peter blinked, confused. "Is it someone from Midtown?" He asked in confusion, latching on to the _'you already have'_ part.

It actually hurt Tony's heart that Peter didn't even consider that Tony would want to adopt him.

"You're an idiot. Yes, they're from Midtown."

Peter looked both excited and confused. "Are they in my grade?"

Tony got impatient and pulled up a link to an official adoption document on his phone.

Apparently the kid had no idea what they were, or where he should look for a name. 

"Who is it?" Peter asked in confusion.

Tony almost laughed. That was his kid, alright.

"It's you. Sign on the dotted line," Tony said, giving up on the 'subtle' approach and pulling out a packet of papers to slam on the ground in front of the boy.

All the other Avengers had fallen silent.

"But, Mr. Stark..." Peter said hesitantly. 

Did he really find the idea of having Tony as a father so unappealing?

"That means... I can't eat 'family-sized' bags of chips anymore..." Peter finished, slowly breaking into a grin.

"Oh, I'm _so _ sorry," Tony said, laughing in relief. 

"In all seriousness... are you sure?" Peter asked.

Tony threw the pen at the boy's face.

"Yes. Sign on the line or I'm disowning you."

"Mr. Stark-" "I think you mean Dad," Tony corrected, starting to gain confidence.

A pause. 

"Dad, I don't think that's how that works."

Tony beamed.

"It is now."

Another small pause where the two smiled at each other.

"Okay, stop waiting, sign on the line before I make you," Tony said, grinning.

Peter signed.

The Avengers applauded.

"Finally!" Clint said, throwing up his hands. Pietro just shook his head in amusement at the two. Natasha grinned at Peter. Rhodey clapped Tony on the back and whispered: "Welcome to the family, officially," to Peter.

So, there was a crazy week and a half in there.

And Peter did get stabbed a couple times.

But it was worth it, because now his long-time father figure was actually becoming his father.

And he had a family again.


	10. 5 Times Peter Hid an Injury

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> \+ the one time he didn't.
> 
> This is a new type for me, but it's one of the 5+1 shot ideas.
> 
> or: 5 times Tony figured out about an injury and 1 time when Peter told him

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is mostly fluff actually, despite the injury title.
> 
> Plus Jason Ionello is an asshole in the comics (not the movies. in the movies he's a cinnamon roll but ya know whatever) and I'm exploiting that here.
> 
> This is mostly Irondad based, but we see Mama Spider, Uncle Loki, Uncle Sam,

**1\. It Sword of Seems Like You Have a Problem**

It was just a normal patrolling day for Peter.

He was swinging through the town when he saw a woman with a sword.

Not to say swords were wrong, but people in New York didn't typically have swords to carry around with them.

The woman was standing in an alleyway, pointing the sword at a guy who was backed up against a wall.

Peter dropped neatly between the buildings to land in between the two.

"Hey guys! Bad day?" He queried.

The woman groaned. "It's about to be a very bad one for you, if you don't back off, Spider-Man."

The man against the wall took the brief moment of her distraction to start to back away. Peter shot a web at the woman as her attention was diverted.

In the nick of time, she dropped to the ground and the web lodged against the wall of a building behind her. She swung the sword at him and he dodged quickly. They had a small fight: swing, dodge, shoot webs, miss, try again.

A scream came from the front of the alleyway. The man who was here before had been blocked by another person holding a gun, brandishing it at the victim.

His Spidey Senses went off too late, and searing pain ripped up his side as the sword embedded itself in his stomach.

Peter looked down to see the woman's hand trembling slightly on the hilt.

"Oh no, I'm allergic!" Peter gasped mockingly. The woman turned toward the front of the alleyway to see the man getting past the one with the gun and fleeing into the streets.

The woman turned back toward Peter and scowled. "You made me lose him. You'll pay," She hissed.

"You know, it _sword _of seems like you've got a problem with me," Peter pointed out. The woman stared at him for a few seconds, then beckoned to the man at the front of the alleyway.

Peter was just watching them, sword still in his stomach. It was a good thing she hadn't pulled it out yet, but this was getting to be an amusing situation.

"So, the neighborhood wall-crawler," The woman said out loud, watching him. "That's me. Did you know stabbing people was kind of impolite? Because that's not what people typically do at social gatherings."

The woman frowned, but before she could do anything else, Peter kicked her quickly and webbed her to the wall, then turned to the other and knocking him to the ground before sticking him down, too.

"Peter, would you like me to alert Mr. Stark about your injury?" Karen asked in his ear. "No thanks. Tell the police about these two. I'll figure it out," Peter replied.

Karen hesitated. "Are you sure, Peter? This looks serious," She said worriedly. "I'm sure! I'll be fine."  
  
  


**Tony's POV**

Tony was working in his lab when he got the alert.

"Boss, Peter has entered the premises."

Since Peter had moved in a few months ago, this wasn't a surprise.

"Send him down," Tony told FRIDAY.

"Will do."  
  
  


**Peter's POV**

"Peter, Boss wants you in the lab," FRIDAY announced as he entered through the window.

Shit.

Peter would have to hide this somehow. He didn't want Tony worrying about him.

He would also have to deal with the huge sword.

"Tell him I'll be down soon," He replied. "You appear to be injured. Would you like me to tell him?" FRIDAY asked. "No! No, please don't," Peter exclaimed. "Injured Spider protocol prevents me from hiding this from him, Peter."

Peter paused.

"I'll take care of this, okay? Please don't tell him," Peter begged. "Okay," FRIDAY replied reluctantly.

He set off to find Loki.

\----------

When he found the god, he was sitting in the lounge with Natasha. "Heyyy," Peter said, slowly lowering himself down from the ceiling.

Natasha fell off of her chair in surprise and Loki dropped his book.

"What the crap?" Natasha demanded, staring at the sword.

"I need help," Peter said awkwardly. "Get Tony, fast," She told Loki.

"Wait!" Peter yelped. "I really don't want him to worry. Can you help me?" He asked.

\--------

Natasha had helped him remove the sword as Loki put on bandages and did his best to hide the wound.

"I still think you should tell Tony," Natasha said anxiously. "I'm fine," Peter replied waving her off.

"If it starts bleeding again, come to me," Loki added, failing to hide his concern.

"Thank you!" Peter said cheerfully and walked to the elevator to meet Tony in the lab.  
  
  


**Tony's POV**

"Hey, Mr. Stark!" A voice called from the back of the lab.

Tony turned to see Peter strolling in through the doors.

"Hey, kid," Tony replied, but his face fell as Peter got closer.

Something was wrong. His face was pale and he was sweating as though he had run a marathon.

"You okay?" Tony asked, moving toward him.

"Perfectly fine, Mr. Stark!" Peter replied cheerfully. Tony frowned, scrutinizing the boy. "Did something happen on patrol?" He asked.

"What? No!" Peter's voice rose a pitch, exposing him. Tony sighed and walked over to his computer.

"FRIDAY, pull up footage from Peter's patrol tonight. Look for injuries."

Peter winced.

A projection appeared in front of Tony, and he watched worriedly.

A woman stabbed Peter with the biggest goddamn sword he had ever seen.

"Peter!" Tony yelled, turning to the boy in shock, rest of the footage ignored. Peter smiled nervously.

Tony grabbed Peter's wrist to hold him in place and stared at his stomach, which didn't seem to be bleeding. Pulling up the boy's shirt, he saw gauze and bandages wrapped around Peter's stomach, going around the back to secure it.

"What the fuck, what the fuck, what the fuck..." Tony breathed in shock at the blood soaking through the bandages.

Peter smiled weakly at him.

"Get your butt to Med Bay before I drag you," Tony threatened.

"Jeez, okay!" Peter said, rolling his eyes as Tony ushered him out the door.  
  
  


**2\. I Just Wanted Some Tacos**

Peter hadn't tried to get trapped under that building.

It just happened!

He had gotten to go on a mission with the Avengers to stop an alien invasion, despite being relatively new to working as a team.

In reflection, maybe if he weren't so desperate to prove himself, things may have turned out differently. One second he was rescuing innocents from the unsteady building, but then he'd been too focused and didn't notice his Spidey Senses growing until it was too late. Peter quickly passed the last child into the arms of his mother, and the pair turned and ran. He was scanning for any more civilians, when the screeching sound of metal on metal echoed through the already-collapsing tower. The floor gave way beneath Peter, and then the terrifying sensation of falling came over him. Peter hit the ground hard. The shock of hitting hard stone sent jolts of pain through his body, and he had to restrain a gasp.

Scrambling to get to his feet, he felt his Spidey Senses go off and jumped back to the ground, cowering in shock. A few seconds later, there was a deafening crashing that had Peter's ears ringing. Pain shot through his side as something sharp shoved its way through his back and out the other side. And then, the rest of the building fell. The tremors shook through the ground, almost sending Peter flying to hit the ceiling. Which, conveniently, was now less than an inch above his head. He was on a mission with the Avengers, and he couldn't even last long enough to help them significantly!

There was no way he was telling Tony. He'd be so disappointed.

Peter slowly turned his head to assess the damage, but when he did, the building groaned and edged inward slightly. Whatever that had lodged itself through his side sent a torrent of agony through him, causing him to yelp slightly.

"Spider-Man? Are you ok?" Steve asked through the comms. Oh right. The comms. "Y-yeah," Peter stammered out, trying to sound confident. "Status report," Steve demanded, sounding unconvinced. "Oh... just, a building kind of fell..." Peter said nonchalantly.  
"Any casualties?" Cap inquired. "No, I got them all out in time," Peter answered. "And you?" He hesitated. "Uh, well, I got a bit hurt in the evacuation... can't really get back to the fight," Peter muttered, looking at the dusty ground awkwardly.

"Amateur," Sam laughed, words hard to make out through the wind buffeting against the man who was likely flying. "Sam," Steve admonished. "Spider-Man, do you need assistance? Is it an emergency?"

"Well, what qualifies an emergency?" Peter replied, dodging the question. "Are you about to die in the next couple of minutes?" Tony interrupted. "Uh, no," He said, eyeing the object - that appeared to be a metal pole - sticking through his side. Technically, he wasn't lying. His healing should keep him alive for at least another half hour.

"Oh shit! Can I get backup on 23rd? They've got reinforcements - some really big dude." Clint yelled into the comms. Peter wished he were able to help. Or that he were the one over battling the reinforcements. Really, he wished he were anywhere but under the building that reminded him far too much of homecoming and the disappointment that would come if Peter were found out.

"Spidey, can you hold on?" Steve queried.

"Yeah," He said in the most casual voice he could muster. "Yeah, I can hang on."

In what felt like a year later, but was probably only about fifteen minutes, Peter checked in with his surroundings again.

Blood was starting to pool underneath him, warm and blending in with his suit, though the colors were muted from the dust wafting through the air. To say he was freaking out was an understatement.

Peter tested the rubble above him, seeing if he could lift it. It shifted slightly, allowing Peter to roll onto his side and sit comfortably.

Well, as comfortably as one could under a building as they were impaled.

If he couldn't lift it... he'd have to ask for help.

Peter hated asking for help, but sometimes it had to be done.

Unable to stop himself, Peter checked in with the comms. "Hey, are you guys like almost done? I know it is an alien invasion and stuff, but I'd really, really appreciate it if someone came to grab me," He said casually, trying to hide how terrified he was. "Spidey, we're in a bit of a jam, is it okay if you wait a bit longer? Or is it getting serious?" Tony asked, worry clear in his tone. They were in a jam. If one of them had to come collect Peter, they might lose. "No, yeah, I'm good," Peter replied.

As soon as the words left his lips, pain shot up his torso from the wound with the metal pole sticking out of it. The boy bit down hard on his lip to restrain a gasp of pain. The Avengers didn't have room on their team for someone weak. he couldn't hold them back.

Five minutes later, Peter was cursing every life choice he had made up to date. Stupid Oscorp, stupid spider, stupid Spider-Man. Why the hell did I decide to join this team? I'm going to die.  
"Shit!" Clint gasped. "Hawkeye?" Natasha asked, concern clear in her voice. "I'm - Ah - I'm ok."

There was silence. "Ok, who's going to point out how obviously that was a lie?" Tony asked. "I'm en route to your location, Hawkeye. Stay put," Natasha demanded. "No worries, you don't need to com- oh, hi," Clint broke off mid-sentence.

"Guys, it's not that bad, but let's wrap this up quickly, ok?" Natasha asked. "Steve, take care of your quadrant with Thor, Falcon, and Hulk. Tony, go pick up Spidey. Uh- where are you?" She asked after a pause.

"Oh, you know that building? I'm under that," Peter said, tensing, preparing for the disappointment that would come. "I- you're UNDER the building?" Tony yelled. Peter heard repulsors firing over the comms.

"...Yeah?" He replied casually. "It's fine down here. Pretty chill. Got a metal thing in me, but other than that, you get me some tacos and I'll be set."

"What the fuck... okay, FRIDAY, scan for life forms."

There was a brief silence, before Tony gasped out a "holy shit".

"Peter, FRIDAY says there's one life form in the building, they've been stabbed through the side and could die from blood loss in the next half hour, and they're about 27 feet down. Please, please, please tell me that's not you."

Peter blinked slowly, black threatening to envelop his vision. "No, yeah, that's me," He said. "About the tacos?"

"What the hell?" Steve cursed through the comms. "Why didn't you fucking speak up, Peter?" Tony snapped, sounding horrified.

"Sorry," Peter whispered, hearing the sound of repulsors through the rubble.

The first sunlight he'd seen in a while cracked through the layers of rock and wall, leaving Peter blinking. "Hey, Mr. Stark," He exclaimed, seeing a flash of red and gold about 25 feet away.

Tony was frantically flinging chunks of rock away, making his way down to Peter. About two minutes later, he was there.

"Kid!" Tony exclaimed, reaching out for Peter.

"Hey, Mr. Stark. What's up?"

"No. Nuh-uh. You've been under a fucking building for at least 45 minutes. That's not allowed," Tony instructed.

Peter sighed. Overkill as always.

"It's just a _building, _Mr. Stark. Plus I had more space in that one than the one at Homecoming."

"Sorry, _what? _That's not your _first _time?" "Forget I said that," Peter said, backtracking. "I most certainly will not forget. I'll be hearing that later."

Tony scooped Peter up, then launched himself off the ground.

-.-.-.-.-.-

Peter had been forced to go to Med Bay and take a crap ton of anesthesia so they could operate with him passed out.

When he opened his eyes again, Tony was sitting in a chair near a bed he was lying in, face in his hands.

"Mr. Stark?" Peter asked slowly, voice hoarse. When Tony raised his head, Peter saw that he had been crying. "I'm sorry..." Peter said sadly. "Kid, you have nothing to be sorry for. I should have - I should have known. I should have known you would say you were okay when you weren't. I'm so sorry. This is all my fault," Tony whispered.

"But- I thought it was mine. I shouldn't have gotten stuck in the first place." "Everyone makes mistakes, Peter," Tony said gently. "So do you," Peter pointed out. "So don't blame yourself."

Tony let out a dry laugh, then looked serious again. "You seriously thought, if I knew what happened, I would have possibly left you there for so long?" Peter paused. "...No?" He guessed. Tony stared at him. "No! That is not a '...no?', that is a 'No!' I would never let you bleed out under a damn building for that long! I would never let you bleed out under a building for even a second if I knew!"

Peter nodded, ashamed. "Oh, hell no. Don't you dare look ashamed. This is in no way your fault. Did you choose to have the building fall on you? No. Did you choose to be impaled? No."

Tony fell silent.

"The point is," He said finally. "I love you, and I don't want you to get hurt."

Peter smiled softly at his mentor/father figure. "I love you too."

Tony sighed loudly. "Giving me gray hairs, jeez," He muttered.

"What, you mean the ones you already have?" Peter asked, smirking. "It wasn't even a big deal anyways."

"Excuse me?"  
  
  


**3\. School Literally Sucks**

Peter walked out of Decathlon practice, wishing Ned were there. MJ had to leave early, so he was all alone.

"Peter!" A voice called from the other side of the hallway.

Peter paused, looking over his shoulder. "Hey, Flash," He greeted. "What's up?" Flash asked, grinning. "Not a ton," Peter replied, grinning.

A few months ago, Peter had been working on a group project with Flash and they had gotten to know each other a bit better, despite their initial reluctance. Peter had learned about Flash's parents, and sympathized. While his parents were dead, Flash's were abusive and so were really not parents at all.

Long story short, Peter helped him with that.

Flash had stopped bullying Peter and started growing closer to Ned, Peter, and MJ (aka the Holy Trio).

They chatted until they got to the front of the school and Flash left.

Peter checked his phone to see who was getting him today.

Sam. Great.

Sam was always late. All. The. Time.

"Parker!" One of Flash's former goons called. Jason Ionello.

Peter kept walking, about to turn the corner out of the school. His Spidey Senses went off, and it was all he had not to duck away from the hand grabbing his shoulder.

"What do you want, Jason?" Peter asked irritably. "Oh! Getting some bravery, I see. Pathetic," Jason spat, shoving Peter roughly against the lockers.

Peter just rolled his eyes. "Don't you have something better to do?" He inquired.

"Idiot," Jason muttered, punching Peter hard in the face.

_Dude I had a building dropped on me last week. You think this hurts?_

Still, it would probably leave a bruise for maybe half an hour.

"Ouch," Peter said sarcastically, before cursing himself mentally. He wasn't supposed to be Spider-Man in school. Only Peter Parker.

Peter fought the urge to roll his eyes as Ionello did his best to beat Peter up, very ineffectively.

This was far from the first time it had happened.

"What the hell is going on here?" Yelled an angry voice from the doors.

Peter's heart almost stopped.

Jason stumbled backward in shock and turned to see Sam standing at the doorway.

"Falcon?" Jason breathed, voice a mixture of shock and fear.

"Do I have to ask again? Why the fuck are you touching my nephew?" Sam asked, stepping forward intimidatingly.

Peter groaned. "Hey, Uncle Sam," He muttered awkwardly, leaning casually against the lockers.

"Hi, Peter," Sam said, diverting his attention briefly. "How the hell-" Jason broke off under the man's glare.

Sam ran over to Peter, taking in the injuries. He was sure they looked bad, but they really didn't hurt.

"You good, kid?" Sam asked, grabbing his arm. "Yeah, thanks Uncle Sam," Peter replied gratefully.

"What the fuck is your problem?" The man asked, raising his eyes to meet Jason's. A small squeak of horror escaped the boy's throat. Clearly he had not expected the intervention of an Avenger.

Sam dropped Peter's wrist and took a few quick strides over to Jason, grabbing the collar of the boy's shirt, who pressed himself backwards into the row of lockers opposite to Peter.

"Stay the hell away from my nephew. Or else I will personally assemble the Avengers to kill you in your sleep."

A teacher who had heard the commotion of Sam yelling ducked back into the classroom, not wanting to be a part of the shit going down.

Sam scoffed at the terrified boy. "Get out," He said, disgusted, as he roughly dropped the boy's shirt and took a step back.

Jason bolted for the door.

Sam returned to Peter's side and shook his head. "You really should tell Tony."

Peter shook his head vigorously. Sam sighed. "Why not, Peter?" He asked quietly. "

Peter stared at the ground before whispering: "He would be so disappointed in me."

There was a pause until Sam started laughing. "Are you crazy?" He asked. Peter's confusion must have been showing on his face, because the man elaborated. "Tony's so proud of you. He could never be disappointed. Trust me."

Peter gave Sam a reluctant smile. "Thanks, Uncle Sam," He said quietly.

\------------

He had hoped to hide the evidence from Tony, but his healing factor had other ideas. Naturally, it had just started to heal by the time he and Sam had reached the tower.

And it was lab day.

Peter walked into the elevator before exacting a promise of silence from Sam. He pulled his hood up to cover his face and the bruises and cuts that were slowly fading.

"Hey, Mr. Stark," Peter said, keeping his head down as he walked into the lab.

"Hey, kid!" Tony called cheerfully, not looking up from his project.

Good.

Peter ran over to his worktable and pulled out the latest web shooter designs.

Maybe he wouldn't notice after all.

But the universe was against that.

Tony looked up and obviously noted the hood shadowing his face.

Sadly, the man knew Peter too well to think it was a casual circumstance.

"Hey, Pete?" Tony asked uncertainly, stepping neatly around his table and walked over to Peter's.

Tony reached out to grab Peter's shoulder - gently but firmly - and used the other hand to push the hood backwards off of his head.

Peter dropped his head immediately, both embarrassed and desperately hoping he didn't see.

The man's small but sharp intake of breath countered that last hope.

Tony softly put his hand on Peter's chin, then lifted the boy's head to meet his eyes.

"Peter," The man whispered, sounding shocked and scared. "I'm sorry," Peter whispered, trying to look away.  
  
  


**Tony's POV**

"Was it Flash? You said he'd stopped!" Tony exclaimed, shock turning to outrage. "No! No, Flash is fine. It was... Jason," Peter said quietly.

"Who is that specifically? I'll kill them."

Peter broke the quiet trance they were in by laughing.

"Please don't," He said, grinning.

"No one touches my son."

By the time the words were out of his mouth, Tony had just realized what he had said. Fortunately, Peter didn't seem to have noticed.

"Don't _worry _about it, Mr. Stark," Peter implored.

Oh, Tony was going to worry about it. But secretly.

All that there was to say was that Jason Ionello never, ever bullied Peter again.

Ever.  
  
  


**4\. Inconvenient**

This one wasn't even Peter's fault.

The universe just had it out for him.

He was walking to the tower when he tripped over a tree root. Right in the middle of public, Peter had gone down and landed badly on his arm.

There was a small cracking sound and Peter cursed. "Okay, come _on! _" He muttered, dragging himself to his feet.

Of _course _he was going to get a broken arm by tripping.

Thanks a fucking ton, Spidey Sense.

Of course, just because he had spider senses didn't mean he had common sense.

The common sense to watch where he was watching.

This was so embarrassing.

Peter ran the rest of the way to the tower. He hissed in pain when he tried to shove open the door. Normally he just jumped through a window when he was injured and Peter was unprepared to have to accommodate the broken arm.

"Hello, Peter. Would you like me to take you to Boss?" FRIDAY asked immediately. "Yes, please, thank you," Peter said, mentally exhausted, as he walked into the elevator.

"Hey, kid," Tony exclaimed, standing by the lounge entrance, waiting. "Hey, Mr. Stark," Peter replied, grinning. "All good today? No injuries from patrol or bullies?"

Technically it wasn't from either of those two categories, so he was telling the truth.

"Nope!" Peter replied cheerfully, ignoring the throbbing in his arm as it started to heal.

"Well, that's good. I was thinking we could patrol together today, if nothing's wrong?" Tony suggested.

Stupid Parker Luck.

"Yeah, that would be great!"

And that's how Peter ended up swinging through Queens with a broken arm.

"Hey kid, give me a hand with this guy!" Tony called over his shoulder. "He's not letting up, and I can't kill him!"

Peter looked up in the midst of exchanging punches with a masked bank robber - Peter's were being held back immensely - and kicked the person into the wall before flipping over to Tony.

Tony was struggling with the level of street criminals. He wasn't used to having to hold back, and so he was primarily on the defensive.

Peter landed in a crouch in front of the crook and punched him. The guy was flung backward and slammed into an ATM. As the man sat up, his eyes widened. "He's trying to go through the slips!" The robber cried. One of his partners looked up to see the person Peter kicked into a wall trying to subtly leave.

Peter webbed them to the floor and then did the same to the others.

"Karen? Call the cops."

Tony walked over to Peter, grinning. "Fun," He commented, nudging Peter in the arm.

Peter choked back a gasp of pain, the other arm flying to clutch the wound - Tony had hit the exact place he had hurt it earlier.

"Kid?" Tony asked, concerned. "You okay?" Peter nodded, letting his arm drop to his side. Tony's eyes narrowed. "Let me see your arm," He instructed. "Uhh, no thanks."

Peter stepped backward to try and escape. "Kid," Tony repeated, grabbing Peter's uninjured arm. He cast a pointed look toward the robbers stuck to the ground. One raised a hand and gave a small wave, movements impaired by the webs.

"Okay, a different place then," Tony decided, then grabbed Peter around the waist, lifted him off the ground, and flew away to the tower.

"That was seriously extra," Peter muttered, dusting himself off as they landed.   
  


**5\. Not My Brightest Idea**

Peter really just wanted to have a normal day.

Of course, being Spider-Man, and having close relationships with the Avengers, that didn't really happen.

"Dude, what happened?" Ned asked as he Peter walked out of school exhaustedly. "I got injected," The boy replied, sighing. Ned hesitated. "You got _what? _" He asked, confused.

Peter understood. Stabbing and shooting was basic enough. But injecting, especially with an unknown liquid - that was very, very dangerous. 

"Okay. Okay! Just - just come to my house. My parents aren't home right now. We'll figure it out there."

\---------

Ned's room was being remodeled. There was tape dispensers everywhere, from putting up posters and wallpaper and such.

Peter had sat down on a bed next to a collection of staplers and other rubbish and Ned pulled out his computer.

"There's... some sort of tech in your system," Ned said, frowning. Peter groaned. Last time something like this happened, it was not fun.

"Where is it?" Peter asked quickly. "Uh... it's made its way into your neck. In the veins, kind of near the base of your skull. Here," Ned said, pointing at the location.

Peter thought quickly. "Okay. Get me a knife," The boy decided. "Excuse me?" Ned shrieked. "I'm going to need your help," Peter added calmly.

"I am _not _ cutting into your neck. Pulling out bullets is one thing, risking actually killing you is another. No way."

Peter sighed. "Well, I can just do it myself," He said, standing. "Nope. That's insanity right there. Why don't you just call Tony?" Ned inquired. "He'd be disappointed. I'm not calling him. End of story."

Ned rolled his eyes. "Well there's no other option, Peter!" 

An idea jumped into his head.

Peter grabbed a staple gun off the bed next to him and put it up against his neck over where the chip was. With a decisive act, he pushed the lever and a staple lodged itself into his skin.

"Oh no," Peter deadpanned. "Looks like I have to go to the hospital."

\-------------

Normally Peter didn't like hospitals, but this was a special case. 

They weren't going to be drawing any blood, so his identity was safe.

Peter was waiting in the queue to check in with Ned and his mother. The two had come up with a cover story to tell Ned's mom: Peter was looking at the staple guns and then reached up to scratch his neck, forgetting it was in his hand.

A stretch, but Peter Parker was known for being clumsy.

\-------------

"Boss, Peter Parker has just been admitted to the hospital," FRIDAY announced to Tony in the middle of a project.

"What?" Tony yelped, shocked. "What happened?" There was a pause. "I am searching the medical records as they are inputted," she declared.

"What hospital?" He asked. "The Queens General Center Hospital - the emergency room, to be precise."

\------------

Okay, so Peter hadn't entirely thought this whole process through.

The staple in his neck was throbbing, and his healing factor was trying to fix it by healing _over _it, meaning he had to mess with the staple every minute to break the skin again.

By the time the doctor saw him, blood was trickling down his collarbone.

The doctor told him what was about to happen and sterilized the space with some sort of wipe.

Then he took a small scalpel and cut open the skin on the sides of the wound, making sure to go deep enough to get to the bottom of it, and deftly pulled it out with a pair of forceps **(that means medical prongs/clips/tweezers)**.

Then the doctor frowned.

"There's something in there," She had muttered. "Can you take it out?" Peter asked, trying to lace the words with as much surprise and concern as he could.

She had reached in again and this time came out with a small device with a blinking red light on the side.

"Thank you!" Peter had said abruptly, grabbing the piece of technology. At the woman's confused look, he quickly came up with a story. "For my... family. To see if it was something I needed or not."

The woman had nodded and carefully bandaged the wound, still slightly suspicious but also just done with life in general.

Then there was a knock at the door.

The doctor went to open the door, but was swept aside by a frantic Tony Stark.

"Kid? What the hell happened? Are you okay? Why didn't you come to me?" He asked, looking Peter up and down.

"Uh, sir, with all due respect, unless you have documentation or you are related to Peter, you really can't be in here. Patient confidentiality and all that," The doctor said, walking forward, tense.

Tony tossed a dismissive look over his shoulder. "I can take it from here. We have doctors over at my place. Let's go, Peter."

The doctor started to protest - "Sir, you can't-" 

But Tony had already equipped his suit and blasted off with Peter.

They landed on a building near Stark Tower, and Tony's suit receded. "So, Peter. Care to tell me what all that was about?" He asked sternly. Peter looked away. "I got... a staple in my neck."

Tony blinked. "How did that even happen?" He inquired, amusement sparking in his eyes. 

"I, uh, forgot I was holding a staple gun."

"No, that's a lie," Tony said, frowning as he watched Peter closely. "Okay, you're right, I was lying. Ned and I were messing around and I fell on the thing," Peter amended. "No, that's also a lie. What's the real reason?"

Peter scowled. Tony knew him too well.

"Okay, Mr. Stark. It started last night..."

**6\. Bam, Ouch**

Tony was used to having to figure out if Peter was hurt.

He wasn't expecting a phone call at 11 at night from the kid.

He certainly wasn't expecting for his kid to be trying not to cry.

"Mr. Stark?" Peter asked through the phone, voice wobbly. "Kid? Are you okay?" Tony replied, already preparing to suit up and fly to his location.

"Uh, okay, so funny story," Peter began, audibly beating back his emotions. "Oh shit," Tony muttered, already preparing for whatever was happening.

"So there was a bomb, right?" He started. "There was a _bomb?! _" 

Tony was already tracking Peter's coordinates and having FRIDAY plot the quickest route to his kid.

The kid.

Whatever.

"Yes, Mr. Stark, that's what I just said- anyways, the bomb. And there was a ton of people, right? So I took the bomb and swung out to this field where there's no one around," Peter paused on the other line. "Uh-huh," Tony said, urging him to continue.

"And, uh, it's about to explode, right?"

Tony slammed his face into a wall.

"I'm on my way. What happened next?" He asked, jumping out the window and then shooting into the sky.

"Okay so I'm like: oh crap, so I drop it in the field, and try to swing out of range, but it explodes. Because it's a bomb. And then there was shrapnel, and it kinda... well, I've been slightly impaled. And like, I've been stabbed _into _ the ground."

"What the fuck, what the fuck, what the fuck..." Tony breathed, about halfway to Peter's location. 

"Where were you impaled?" He asked, freaking out. "Uh, only the shoulder, so that's good."

Tony looked down at the site to see wreckage and churned-up ground everywhere.

As well as a small, limp figure stranded among it all.

His kid.

Tony dropped down next to Peter, who had managed to take off his mask with one hand. The boy gave him a laboured smile.

"Hey, kid," Tony whispered, inspecting the damage.

"Hey, Mr. Stark. This kinda... blows, doesn't it?" Peter asked, laughing a bit. Tony blinked. "Did you just try and make a pun?" He retorted, equal parts amused, terrified, and confused.

Probably more the terrified, though.

"Yeah, that pun kind of blew up in my face, though," Peter added. Tony groaned. "Shut up. I'm trying to focus."

Tony carefully picked up Peter, careful to keep the shrapnel in his shoulder to prevent extensive bleeding.

Bruce and a team of medical professionals were called to Med Bay, and a few minutes later, Tony and Peter arrived.

15 minutes later, Peter was let off of anesthesia as it had ceased working. The drug was replaced with Steve's special super-soldier shit, and it was still barely keeping him under.

An additional hour later, Peter was cleared, and Tony was allowed to go in.

"Thank you," Tony blurted out, at the same time as Peter said "I'm sorry."

They stared at each other for a few seconds until Peter looked away, muttering another apology.

"I shouldn't have been an issue," His kid began, in the same moment as Tony said "You told me."

Cue another few seconds of awkward staring, until Peter turned and looked at a security camera in the corner like he was on the Office, making Tony start laughing.

Then Tony processed what Peter had said.

"_What? _ Kid, you weren't an issue. I'm just glad you told me," Tony said softly, putting a hand on the kid's shoulder. 

Peter stared at the floor, eyes a bit watery. "I should've taken care of it," His kid whispered. Tony sighed. "We really need to deal with your guilt complex. I'm telling you, it wasn't your fault. At all. I'm just... really glad that you trusted me enough to call me."

Peter looked up at that, shocked. "Of course I trust you! Why wouldn't I?" Tony flushed. "Well, I just kind of thought that because you always hid it, you didn't trust me enough to tell me..." He muttered, facing his own insecurities.

Fucking emotions are a bitch.

"I'd always trust you, you're like a fath- uh, I guess - you're like a mentor to me," Peter stammered out. 

Tony caught onto the little word his kid hadn't said.

Father.

It had a nice ring to it. 

"Thanks, kid," Tony said. "And, father?" He asked, a small smirk tugging at his mouth.

Peter immediately turned a bright shade of red and started apologizing quickly, a mile a minute.

"Kid," Tony stated. Peter fell immediately silent. "You're like a son to me, Peter," He admitted softly, smiling.

There was a small silence between the two.

"Love you, Mr. Stark," Peter said quickly, before looking away.

The way he said it made it seem like a casual thing - the lack of an 'I' before the 'love you' somehow made it seem more informal, more... comfortable.

"Love you too, kid," Tony replied, smiling widely. "Plus, if we just admitted this, you have _got _to stop calling me Mr. Stark," He added.

"Good luck with that, Mr. Stark," Peter said cheekily.

Tony Stark. Genius, billionaire, husband, philanthropist, _father. _  
  
He really liked the way that sounded.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What did you think of that?
> 
> It's my first time writing a 5+1 fic
> 
> That took forever to write oh my god
> 
> A n d it was super fluffy
> 
> I don't normally write fluff i am way better at hardcore angst 
> 
> b u t
> 
> Leave requests in the comments :D
> 
> I normally just take them based on what I feel like writing.
> 
> This is probably my last update of the night.
> 
> Hope you enjoyed!


	11. Winter (Replacement, Part 2)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter + HYDRA + Winter Soldier stuff is always fun!  
We get to say hi to Shuri!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is Part 2 of Replacement. I will be giving you a quick refresher course on that now:
> 
> New guy named Joshua shows up as a replacement to Peter. Avengers minus Natasha, Clint, and Bucky treat Peter harshly, leading to the four of them moving to Clint's place briefly. The three adults send Peter's teachers on a vacation and take over teaching for a bit. Thor and Loki show up at the compound and figure out Joshua has the Avengers under a spell + he is working for HYDRA. Loki releases them from the spell and kills Joshua later, and Peter & co. reconcile with the others at a field trip to the tower. And yet, HYDRA's a bitch.
> 
> Well, hope you enjoy this!

They had their touching moment, but a sharp clearing of the throat interrupted. "Oh!" Natasha exclaimed, looking back at Peter's classmates. "Ha... I had forgotten they were here," Tony said awkwardly.

Natasha looked over toward them. "Okay, what the fuck?" Flash yelled from the crowd. Peter facepalmed. Of course he would choose now to speak up. Of course. "Can someone explain what's going on?" Cindy asked, looking between Peter and the Avengers in confusion. Clint started laughing, but at a glare from Peter, it turned into a bout of coughing.

"Right," Tony said, putting on his sunglasses. "You guys say nothing of this. _Nothing_. I will have my lawyers at your doorstep, and I'll scrub the Internet, and _it will not end well for you._ Sounds good?" Everyone was silent. Tony smiled calmly. "Good. Bye, now. Peter, you stay!" Peter looked toward the ground, slightly uncomfortable. "Y-yeah, ok," He stammered. Natasha called Happy, and he took the kids back to the school.

Peter looked up at Tony and the rest of the Avengers, feeling more at home than he had in weeks.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

But it was foolish. HYDRA does not give up so easily.

"Initiate the second plan?" The man asked his boss, one week after Joshua's failure.

A slow smile spread over the boss' face. "Ah, yes, we shall. The spider will be ours."

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Peter heard a shout coming from an alley below. He immediately changed course to investigate, swinging down into the alleyway and landing with a flip. "Spider-Man," Said a man decked out in all black, with a hood and mask covering a lot of his face. "Yes?" He said warily. His Spidey Senses were blaring, stronger than he'd ever felt them. The man released a woman, who looked up at him with fear-filled eyes. Peter gestured for her to run, which she did, immediately.

"You are exactly who I was looking for," The man said.

"That's... great," Peter said skeptically. "I mean, I've been told I'm the answer to people's prayers," _a complete lie,_ "but I'm sorry, I don't date old men. That includes you, too, Hoodie."

The mugger - now dubbed Hoodie - snorted. "I was told you would be a frustrating one. It appears they were not wrong," He said, rolling his eyes. "See, I've been told that, too! Mind telling me _who, _exactly, said I was frustrating?" Peter inquired. Hoodie smirked. "Oh, some people here and there. You should come quietly."

It was Peter's turn to roll his eyes. "Why? So you can take me off and do who-knows-what? I don't think so." Hoodie shook his head. "Well, that's your loss, then," He stated.

Peter's Spidey Senses went off, and he ducked a punch coming for his face. "Wow! We were having a polite conversation!" He exclaimed. Hoodie simply laughed, before pulling out a taser. "Oh shi- ahem, shiitake mushrooms! We're getting real here, I see!" His senses alerted him again, and he dodged the two coils that shot out from the end of the weapon. "Dude! Didn't your mom ever tell you not to play with that type of thing?" Peter asked.

There was a quiet whistling sound in the air, accompanied by the increasing of his Spidey Senses, and Peter realized someone else was there, shooting something at him. He quickly planned out a route of escape, but heard other, similar sounds. _Darts. Probably laced with some kind of poison. _Peter tried to calculate a way out, but only managed to get past two before there was a sharp stinging in the side of his neck.

"W-whoa, what did you make th'se out of? They n'rmally cant get through my suit..." Peter trailed off, aware that his words were now slurring together. _What was in that stuff?_

The man approached Peter, taser in hand. "And you see, little spider, that is why you don't oppose HYDRA. Cut off one head... two more shall take its place."

With that, he pushed the stun gun into Peter's side and squeezed the trigger.

And, through the screaming that was so distant that Peter barely realized it was coming from himself, everything slowly went black.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Peter slowly opened his eyes, realizing just how _dark _it was in his room.

Wait.

This wasn't his room.

Thanks to his advanced sight, he could start to see the place clearly. He became aware of chains binding his left leg to a wall. Peter stood up and gave them an experimental tug, slowly beginning to panic when they didn't give in or break.

He continued until his was pulling with all his might, but it just.

Wouldn't.

Break.

Peter's heart sped up as he looked around frantically, for any possible way to escape. There was a door about 10 feet away from him. And on the doors, there were... bars.

A thumping noise echoed from outside the doors. Footsteps. Peter immediately curled up, pretending to be asleep. There was a small rattling. "Subject-Soldier 7 is not yet awake," A voice declared. "How about we change that?" Another voice added. There was a clinking of metal on metal, and Peter could tell that a key was put into the door.

"Hello, маленький паук," The second voice said. Peter's Spidey Senses went off, and a second later, someone drove their foot into Peter's side. Exactly where the taser had been.

Peter gasped in pain. His eyes shot open again, and he saw two people looking down at him. The source of the first voice, standing by the door. The second voice, a dark haired man, standing over him with a cruel smirk. "So he was awake after all," He said. Peter scrambled to his feet, backing into a corner. "Who are you guys?" The boy asked, trying to keep the fear out of his voice. "My name," Said the second person. "Is Helmut Zemo. I trust you've heard of me."

Peter froze. Zemo was the guy who started the Civil War. Of course, the war was unsuccessful, but it got _really _close. And if he was right here in front of Peter... well, Peter was possibly screwed. "I see you do know me. And the man behind me? My new ally. Alexander Pierce. You thought he was dead? I'm afraid you people were sorely mistaken." Peter paled at Zemo's words. Everyone assumed that the former HYDRA leader was dead. That Nick Fury had killed him.

Apparently this was not the case.

"You see, I realized HYDRA and I have a common purpose now. I want to tear apart the Avengers. HYDRA wants the Avengers to cease being a threat. So now... we can work together."

Peter was briefly aware of Zemo turning to Pierce and saying: "You don't talk much, do you?"

"W-what do you want from me?" Peter asked, voice trembling. "Oh, you're a smart one. Surely you can figure it out from what I said earlier. Subject-Soldier 7? I trust you know how many Winter Soldiers there are. Or, that is, were. Your dear friend Bucky, for one. Josef and the others. That is six total, is it not?" Zemo inquired. Clearly it was a rhetorical question.

Peter's heart dropped. Six Winter Soldiers. Six test subjects. And Peter - he was 7. Subject-Soldier 7. "No-" Peter gasped as he understood. It can't work.

But based on Bucky's descriptions... it could happen to anyone.

A thought came to Peter. Reverse programming. Choose one thing to remind you of one person. Peter took a deep breath.

Natasha. Her... glaring. She did that a lot.

Bucky. Metal arm. That was easy.

Clint. His bow. He always had it on him.

Vision. The Mind Stone.

Wanda. Her jacket.

Shuri. Vines. They had already discussed what they would use, because in the superhero world, you never knew what could happen. It had come up in casual conversation.

Bruce. His glasses.

Thor. His hammer.

Loki. His knives. (What else would Peter use?)

Steve. His Look of Worry.

Scott... his look of confusion?

T'Challa's look of exasperation.

Sam with his guns.

Rhodey with... his leg.

MJ. Crisis notebook.

Ned. Legos.

Tony. What could he do for-

Peter lost his train of thought when pain erupted from the side of his face. He looked up to see Zemo glowering at him. "Not paying attention? Then how about we get started?" Peter opened his mouth to apologize, or to say _something, _but quickly closed it at the man's glare. 

_I have to stop apologizing... that's what Mr. Stark says..._

Peter was punched in the head, and it all went black.

When he opened his eyes again, he was strapped down to a table. Zemo was approaching with a knife. "No..." Peter gasped. "Please!" Pierce only smiled. "Misbehavior has punishments," He said coldly. Peter thought that was the first time he had heard the other man talk. "This will only hurt for... a few minutes while I put this device in," Zemo added. Then, slowly, he pushed the knife into Peter's shoulder. 

It had begun to burn when Peter decided to let himself scream. It ripped itself from his body and tore through the room. "Ah-ah, soldiers don't scream," Zemo corrected, shoving the knife in more aggressively. Peter bit his lip to prevent more screaming, more pain, and tears slowly streaming down his face. Zemo pulled the knife out, and replaced it with a small metal device. Peter almost shrieked again as the man shoved it roughly into his open wound.

****"Happy. Alone. Radioactive. Restart. One. Dormant. Nine. Far. Seven. Street."

Peter inhaled sharply as he realized what they were doing. _"Trigger words", _Bucky would call them. To turn him away from Bucky and into the Winter Soldier.

Zemo slowly took his hand off of Peter's shoulder, repeating the words.

"Happy. Alone. Radioactive. Restart. One. Dormant. Nine. Far. Seven. Street."

Peter tried to reach over and take out the device, but it was futile, considering his arms were strapped down. "No misbehavior... we wouldn't want to have consequences again, would we?" Zemo asked.

"Happy. Alone. Radioactive. Restart. One. Dormant. Nine. Far. Seven. Street."

Zemo said it this time as he pushed a button on a control panel. "The memory wiper should be taking effect soon," Pierce said. "That's what happened last time," Zemo agreed. Peter hadn't even realized that the other man was still in the room.

_Remember. I have to remember them._

Natasha. Bucky. Clint. Vision. Wanda. Shuri. Bruce. Thor. Loki. Steve. Scott. T'Challa. Sam. Rhodey. MJ. Ned.

_I'm not forgetting someone, right?_

**"Happy. Alone. Radioactive. Restart. One. Dormant. Nine. Far. Seven. Street."**

Natasha. Bucky. Clint. Vision. Wanda. Shuri. Bruce. Thor. Loki. Steve. Scott. Sam. Rhodey. MJ. Ned.

**"Happy. Alone. Radioactive. Restart. One. Dormant. Nine. Far. Seven. Street."**

Natasha. Bucky. Clint. Vision. Wanda. Shuri. Thor. Loki. Steve. Scott. Sam. Rhodey. MJ. Ned.

**"Happy. Alone. Radioactive. Restart. One. Dormant. Nine. Far. Seven. Street."**

Natasha. Bucky. Clint. Wanda. Shuri. Thor. Loki. Steve. Scott. Sam. Rhodey. MJ. Ned.

**"Happy. Alone. Radioactive. Restart. One. Dormant. Nine. Far. Seven. Street."**

Natasha. Bucky. Clint. Shuri. Thor. Loki. Steve. Scott. Sam. Rhodey. MJ. Ned.

**"Happy. Alone. Radioactive. Restart. One. Dormant. Nine. Far. Seven. Street."**

Natasha. Bucky. Clint. Shuri. Loki. Steve. Scott. Sam. Rhodey. MJ. Ned.

**"Happy. Alone. Radioactive. Restart. One. Dormant. Nine. Far. Seven. Street."**

Natasha. Bucky. Clint. Shuri. Loki. Steve. Scott. Rhodey. MJ. Ned.

**"Happy. Alone. Radioactive. Restart. One. Dormant. Nine. Far. Seven. Street."**

Natasha. Bucky. Shuri. Loki. Steve. Scott. Rhodey. MJ. Ned.

**"Happy. Alone. Radioactive. Restart. One. Dormant. Nine. Far. Seven. Street."**

Natasha. Bucky. Shuri. Loki. Steve. Scott. MJ. Ned.

**"Happy. Alone. Radioactive. Restart. One. Dormant. Nine. Far. Seven. Street."**

Natasha. Bucky. Shuri. Loki. Scott. MJ. Ned.

**"Happy. Alone. Radioactive. Restart. One. Dormant. Nine. Far. Seven. Street."**

Natasha. Bucky. Loki. Scott. MJ. Ned.

**"Happy. Alone. Radioactive. Restart. One. Dormant. Nine. Far. Seven. Street."**

Natasha. Bucky. Loki. MJ. Ned.

**"Happy. Alone. Radioactive. Restart. One. Dormant. Nine. Far. Seven. Street."**

Natasha. Bucky. Loki. Ned.

**"Happy. Alone. Radioactive. Restart. One. Dormant. Nine. Far. Seven. Street."**

Natasha. Loki. Ned.

**"Happy. Alone. Radioactive. Restart. One. Dormant. Nine. Far. Seven. Street."**

Natasha. Ned.

**"Happy. Alone. Radioactive. Restart. One. Dormant. Nine. Far. Seven. Street."**

Natasha.

**"Happy. Alone. Radioactive. Restart. One. Dormant. Nine. Far. Seven. Street."**

...

_Do I remember them?_

_Wait, who am I supposed to remember?_

_Who am I?_

_-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-_

"Happy. Alone. Radioactive. Restart. One. Dormant. Nine. Far. Seven. Street."

The boy looked up to the first person he'd ever seen.

"Soldier?" The man asked.

The boy, through some innate knowledge, responded.

"Ready to comply."

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

"Dark Spider!"

The boy had long since learned this was his name. It had been... maybe three weeks since he first saw the man calling him over presently. "Yes, sir?" Dark Spider asked, looking over.

"We have a mission for you," Pierce said, a small smirk growing on his face. _Finally!_

He had been training for the three weeks - it was about time he had something else to do.

Well, apart from the surgeries and experimentation that took place every other day. Those typically involved some type of serum.

"These are the Avengers. Find them. Take them out. Make sure Tony Stark is first." Zemo held out a picture of a group of assorted men and women. Then he indicated a man with dark hair and brown eyes, wearing sunglasses and a suit. This must be Tony Stark. Dark Spider nodded. He would not fail this task.

"Melikov Ilyich, Logan Douglas, and Gavril Abakumov will accompany you. When you're there," The man lowered his voice. "Take them out, too."

Dark Spider smiled ruthlessly. "I will not fail you, sir," He said confidently.

"I believe that. One more time, however..."

Dark Spider looked down, knowing what was coming. He hated it, but it was necessary.

"Happy. Alone. Radioactive. Restart. One. Dormant. Nine. Far. Seven. Street."

The boy glanced up hesitantly once Zemo finished.

"Soldier?" The man asked.

The words were constantly rehearsed in the boy's mind.

With a confident smirk, Dark Spider replied: "Ready to comply."

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Natasha was freaking out. She had tried thousands of times to call Peter, but he never picked up. He didn't communicate with anyone else. He had been gone for _three weeks, _and the Avengers were frantically trying to find him.

With the exception of Thor and Loki, as they had returned to Asgard the day after Peter discovered the truth about Joshua. They had no way to contact the two.

"Any luck?" She asked through the comms, voice trembling. "No! He wouldn't have just left, right? He at least would have talked to his friends?" Tony replied immediately. "Probably. Is MJ still at the tower? I need to talk with her," Natasha declared.

"No, she left a while ago. Take Clint with you to visit her, at least. If someone took Peter by force... well, they could probably take any of us."

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Tony had a heavy feeling in his chest as he took off his comms. And for once, it wasn't his arc reactor. Was it possible Peter ran away? But it was unlikely, considering he would have talked to Clint, Bucky, or Natasha first. Or Ned and MJ. So it must have been by force. Who would have done that?

Tony pulled up some screens, frantically trying to find something, _anything. _"Sir, move away from the window immediately!" FRIDAY's voice came over the intercom, sounding frightened. "FRIDAY, what is it?" Tony demanded, only half paying attention. "Deploying force movement," She said next. Nanobots swarmed out of his arc reactor and over his hands, then shot Tony backwards toward the wall. "What's the deal?" Tony asked, real anger entering his voice. FRIDAY was about to reply, but then a window shattered and a bullet flew past, lodging itself in the wall.

Tony stared in astonishment. If FRIDAY hadn't gotten him out of the way... he would be dead. Bullet through the brain. "That," FRIDAY replied sassily to Tony's earlier comment. "Right. Put the tower on lockdown mode. Anyone who enters - apart from the people with clearance, of course - tell me."

"Got it, sir. That being said, Ms. Romanoff has entered the building with Mr. Barton and Ms. Jones," FRIDAY said quickly.

"Thanks. Good job, nice practice."

"You're welcome, Boss."

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

The Dark Spider swung in through a window right before it slammed shut. He had a Scrambler - what he called the device he created that made him invisible to all sorts of technology - tucked into his uniform. The boy had a mask across his face, and a pair of night vision glasses - or goggles, they were quite bulky. Dark Spider slowly reached down to grab his MMS241 - the machine gun he had gotten quite used to. The man - Tony Stark - was in the lab located ahead of him.

His first two targets were dead already, the two people who had come with him from HYDRA. Of course, it was easy. They didn't expect to be betrayed. Surprisingly, it was not by Dark Spider's hand that they died. The two people were shot down by Tony Stark's AI, and their security system. It was a shame they hadn't brought Scramblers themselves. To be honest, he couldn't have saved them if he had wanted to. It was too fast.

But for now, he had to focus on the mission at hand.

Instinctively, he climbed swiftly into the ventilation shafts in order to invade the laboratory. Dark Spider slowly lowered himself down into Tony Stark's room, sticking to the shadows in order not to be seen. He landed without a sound, and the man wasn't alerted, thanks to the Scrambler. The boy slowly raised his gun. Inhale, aim. Exhale... fire. The bullet went right where it was supposed to.

Except, at the last moment, the man had leaned down to grab something under his desk, and the bullet embedded itself in the wall with a bang. Dark Spider's eyes widened. His luck, of course, was terrible as usual. With a gasp, Tony Stark spun around to see him standing in the corner with a gun. The boy looked around frantically for an escape, surveying the room. His eyes landed on a holographic version of... himself.

Were they looking for HYDRA? Was that how he knew to move away from his first shot? A name was listed next to his face: Peter Parker. Who was that? An agent assigned to his case? He quickly read some more data: Age 15, like himself. Male. Brown hair. Brown eyes... this agent sounded exactly like Dark Spider. But he was listed as Peter Parker...

He was brought back to reality when his sixth sense - Spidey Sense, as HYDRA called it - went off, and he ducked down to the ground as a humming noise started. Two seconds later, a beam of energy shot over Dark Spider's head and exploded against the wall. He let out a small snort - that was never going to work on him. Lifting his gun again, Dark Spider aimed for the man's heart - only to discover it was rapidly being encased by a suit of metal. He stared in disbelief as a mask snapped over Tony Stark's head and the eyes started to glow.

"Who the hell are you?" The man demanded, leveling a hand with a glowing circle in the middle at him. Dark Spider went though a quick internal debate before deciding not to reply. He ducked under another ray of light, and looked around for something else he could use. Seizing a vibranium knife from his belt, he ran toward Stark and managed to chip away some nanites from the man's suit. Dark Spider felt his Spidey Senses go off, but was too late as he felt one of those rays sear across his face, knocking off his glasses. In fear that his identity could be discovered, Dark Spider turned his head before the man could see his eyes, quickly attached himself to the wall and ran up toward the open vent. There was a small gasp from Tony, and Dark Spider cursed under his breath as he ran off silently. He'd have to return to get the man later.

"Ms. Romanoff, Mr. Barton, and Ms. Jones have entered the building," A voice said calmly. Dark Spider ignored this.

The next target the boy would aim for was the man with long hair. In the picture, he was partially blocked by the woman with the bright red hair and Tony Stark, leaving Dark Spider to only see the man's face.

There was a crackling over the intercom. "Avengers, please report to the common room for an emergency meeting," A woman, clearly an AI, announced. Dark Spider shook his head. All of his targets in one place. They would never cease to amaze him.

The first person to walk into the room was the woman with the red hair. Dark Spider slowly lifted his gun, then internally cursed when he realized the safety was active. He tried to disable it silently, but there was a small clicking noise. Sadly, that was all the woman needed to look directly up in his direction. Dark Spider pulled the hood up over his face to hide his features, then heard another safety clicking off. The woman had a gun, and was staring straight at him.

He dropped from the vents, landing on the ground before frantically trying to shoot the woman. She dodged every shot, retaliating with her own that Dark Spider could barely dodge thanks to his Spidey Senses.

When he made eye contact, the woman was glaring at him.

Pain shot through his head as something in the back of his mind started talking. "Spider... Natasha... Avengers... Assassin..."

Dark Spider clutched at his head as these words came to him, bringing torrents of hurting to his head.

The assassin dropped her glare and stared at him, wide-eyed. "Peter?" She asked.

Peter.

That name again! Who was it?

"Peter, it's me, Natasha," The woman said frantically. "Are you okay? What's going on?" Natasha asked. Dark Spider slowly raised his head, saying the first words he had in hours.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

"Who the hell is Peter and why should I care about him?" He asked through glazed eyes.

Natasha was left wordless at Peter's question. When she gathered herself to speak, he was gone. "Peter!" She yelled at the ceiling, knowing it was futile.

_"PETER!!!!"_

Natasha could tell the desperation entered her voice. She had been trained: Emotions are a sign of weakness. Don't show them.

But her baby spider was completely messed up, and she wasn't going to just let that happen.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Tony ran into the common room to see Natasha staring at the ceiling, screaming. "Natasha? Nat. Hey, Romanoff? You okay?" The woman finally turned to make eye contact with him.

"No," was the only word she said.

"Okaaaay... well, you'd never believe what just happened. Some dude in a mask dropped into my lab and shot at me. He missed, thankfully, but he's somewhere in the building." Tony waited for Natasha to say something, or to look surprised.

She didn't.

"I know," She finally said. "It was Peter."

Tony glared at her. "Not funny. Seriously, Romanoff. Don't make that joke..." He trailed off, realizing that the assassin looked completely serious. "I wasn't kidding," She said, monotone.

"Explain," Tony demanded.

"He attacked me, too. Without the mask. I know his face. I'm assuming you didn't see it. Signs of burns around the uniform's hood - probably caused by your repulsors. You blasted it off, if I'm correct. Now your facial expression is confirming it. Peter ran, through the vents because that's how he attacked me, due to the new worn-out marks on his remarkably polished shoes, probably trying to keep his identity a secret. That's what we were told, anyways. Return to finish the job later. He moved on to his next target: hypothetically me, but it could have been anyone. He failed again. Run again. Another target. We can assume it's the Avengers."

Natasha said all this in an unbiased, factual way, but Tony could hear the desperation, anger, and sadness in her voice.

"And who wants us dead?" She asked rhetorically. "That can actually get to Peter," The woman added. "There are a few possibilities. Peter, when he attacked me, said the following words: _'Who the hell is Peter?'_. Clearly he has no recollection of his life before... whatever happened. You know who said the same basic thing? Bucky, when he was confronting Steve. And Bucky was kidnapped by HYDRA, and Peter seems to be undergoing the same thing as Bucky. When he saw me, he muttered a few things, including my name. He had some memories of me, but clearly they were suppressed. The type of gun Peter was carrying was an MMS241. The same type of gun that HYDRA equipped Bucky with. If my hypothesis is correct..." Natasha looked down.

"HYDRA turned Peter into a Winter Soldier..." Tony finished.

"Oh shit..." Clint said. Apparently he had walked into the middle of the discussion. "This is worse than I thought."

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Steve started making his way toward the common room after grabbing his shield. Once the Avengers had all assembled there, they discussed the situation. One of the most powerful members of the team had been brainwashed into fighting against them. Thor and Loki were currently off-world, so there wasn't really much anybody could do.

The team had agreed to split up, and whoever saw Peter first would send a message to the others, and they'd try to work together and stop him.

Of course, nobody realized how easily Peter could subconsciously navigate the tower.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Tony was walking down the hall when pain suddenly tore through his back. Spinning, he saw the attacker from earlier crouched into a fighting stance. When Tony looked up, the last bits of hope that it wasn't Peter faded. He could recognize his kid anywhere. And this was him.

"Peter, please, wait, can we talk about this?" Tony asked, subtly reaching for the alert button. Peter, however, saw this movement and spun forward, then gave a quick roundhouse kick, knocking his hand away with another sharp pang of agony. It was definitely going to be bruised, if not sprained. Thankfully, he hadn't heard any bones snap. That meant Peter had to have been holding back for some reason.

"Don't call me that," Peter finally said. "What, your name?" Tony asked. "No! Peter is _not _my name. My name is -" The boy broke off. "Is classified..." He finally finished.

"I see..." Tony said, not, in fact, seeing. Quickly, he moved to press the button to activate his Iron Man suit, but Peter moved too quickly. He knocked Tony's hand away and kicked the man directly in the kneecap. There was a small cracking sound, and Tony gasped in pain as he instinctively clutched at the injury.

"Stop trying," Peter said. "You'll never be good enough. You've never _been _good enough." Tony flinched at the words. All his life, he had thought that he would never be good enough - at anything, really. A good enough engineer. A good enough student. A good enough son.

Hell, a good enough father.

And now the person he cared about most in his life was repeating those same thoughts to his face. Despite knowing he was brainwashed... it still hurt.

Peter leveled his gun at Tony's head. "Tell me who Peter is and I'll make your death quick and painless." Tony sighed. He would never believe the story. But of course, he'd have to tell it anyways.

"Look, kid, you're Peter. You've been living with us for a year now, here at Stark Tower. You're an Avenger, like us. The youngest. We all love you. You disappeared three weeks ago. Presumably you've been brainwashed by HYDRA-" Tony broke off when Peter smacked him.

"Liar!" Peter exclaimed, but his voice shook and it sounded more like a wail.

Tony winced. "Come on. You don't remember me?" He asked. "Why should I? Because of your lies?" Peter retorted. "Peter, they're not lies! Don't tell me you haven't had any weird memories - or lapses of something?" Peter flinched, and Tony could see he had struck a nerve. "Oh! When you saw Natasha? The red-haired lady? She _told _me you said things. That you'd have no clue as... whatever you think you are." "SHUT _UP!_" Peter screamed. The hand holding the gun was starting to wobble, and Tony took the opportunity to hit the alert button on his watch.

Almost immediately, the Avengers all ran onto the scene. Peter spun, leaping onto the ceiling into a fighting position. Bucky stepped forward, arms raised. The boy saw his metal arm and flinched, before squeezing his eyes shut in what looked like an effort to ward off pain. "Kid. We don't want to hurt you. Just stop what you're doing." Peter rolled his eyes at Bucky's words. "I'm not going to stop. HYDRA wants you all dead... and dead you will be."

A bit of a brash comment coming from someone that is about to face off most of the Earth's Mightiest Heroes, despite being practically the strongest.

The issue was, the whole team would be pulling their punches.

Peter wouldn't be.

Sam was the first to attack, punching at Peter, which the boy dodged quickly. Steve went in next, trying to seize Peter's arms and hold them still. Peter shook him off as easily as if the man were a pesky fly.

Tony surveyed the room. It was big... big enough, hopefully.

"FRIDAY... send in VERONICA." 

Within seconds, FRIDAY replied: "Deploying VERONICA."

Peter was fighting off most of the Avengers, and holding his own.

As the Hulkbuster suit formed around Tony, Peter looked over, and his eyes widened as the mask slammed down over Tony's head. Tony reached out to pin the boy to the ground, but Peter leapt out of the way, eyes wild.

Finally, Clint joined the fight, aiming his bow - loaded with a blunt taser arrow - at the boy. Peter's eyes widened and he clutched at his head. "No..." He muttered. "No, no, nonono!" Peter shook his head furiously. "What are you guys doing to me?" He asked. For the first time since he had shown up, Tony heard real fear enter his voice. Peter had faltered in his fighting, and Tony intended to take advantage of that.

Moving quickly, he grabbed Peter's arms and pulled them behind his back. Peter struggled, but was unable to shake Tony's grip. Natasha ran over with vibranium handcuffs - the only known metal that Peter couldn't break. The boy apparently realized this, and didn't even try to get them off. That was what it looked like, anyways.

Tony let go of the boy, to be replaced by Bucky, who caught hold of him using his incredibly strong metal arm.

Tony stepped out of VERONICA, but stayed in his regular Iron Man suit.

"Let me go!" Peter demanded. "Yeah, why should we do that?" Sam asked, moving forward cautiously. "So I can complete the first part of my mission," Peter retorted, rolling his eyes. "And what is the first part of your mission?" Rhodey inquired.

"Kill him," The boy said, pointing. "Yeah, okay," Tony said, moving towards Peter. "I don't know why you want to kill me," He continued. "But I don't think that's a good idea. Don't you even have teammates with you? You _can't _be serious that you tried to take on the Avengers _alone._" Peter said nothing.

"Look, kid, just surrender. You can't win this," Steve said quietly. Peter took a deep breath. "Actually, I think I can." With a sharp tug, Peter yanked his hands apart, tearing through the vibranium.

Clearly HYDRA had done _something _to enhance him.

Peter pulled himself out of Bucky's grip, and kicked him in the chest, sending the man flying across the room. His metal arm made a clanging sound as it hit the wall, and Peter winced. Wanda quickly held her hands up and a red haze started creeping over to the boy. As soon as it reached Peter, however, it flickered and disappeared. Wanda recoiled. "His mind... is blocked, somehow!" She yelled over to the others.

The mind stone in Vision's forehead started to glow, and Peter looked away, a flicker of recognition entering his eyes. Then he leaped backward to swerve away from a bright blast of light.

"Guys," Tony whispered into his comms. "We all have to attack at once. One at a time, he can easily avoid them. But simultaneously, he has to pick which ones to dodge. If we cover every possible escape, at least one of us should be able to hit him. Finally, and I cannot stress this enough, only use stunning techniques. We are _not _going to hurt him in any lasting way, shape, or form, because we can get him back. Understand?" Tony asked. There were affirmatives from each member, ranging from the _'yep', _from Rhodey, the _'makes sense' _from Wanda, and the _'you don't fucking say' _from Bucky. "Three... two... one... _now!"_

They all took a separate way out. Peter was able to dodge most of everyone's attacks, but he was brushed by a stun ray from Tony himself, another blast from Vision, and one of Natasha's Taser Disks. The boy fell to the ground, finally unconscious.

Tony ran over, stepping out of the Iron Man suit to pick up his kid.

Peter was light as a feather, which was kind of creepy. Tony was able to effortlessly carry him over to Med Bay, yelling for Bruce to get the lab ready.

The man laid Peter down on the bed and Bruce brought out some of Peter's things: pictures of him and the Avengers together, the old Spider-Man suit with Karen in it, Peter's phone, a picture of him and his Aunt May 6 months ago right before she left on a four-year-long vacation, and his old web-shooters.

All the Avengers ran into the room, and MJ trailed after them. She had just kind of been there because Natasha brought her to the tower to look into some of the evidence of where Peter had gone.

Apparently that was unnecessary now.

"We have to erase the trigger words. Of course, it won't work if we don't know what they are, so... we need Peter up," Bucky stated, arms crossed. "Actually," Tony said, thinking. "I can't erase them alone. But I have an idea," He decided. Natasha looked up. "So do I."

Tony leveled his gaze at her. "Mine's standing in the corner," He said, glancing at Wanda. 

"Yeah, Tony, HYDRA's trigger words aren't exactly a part of my skill set," Wanda stated. "I can tell there's a disturbance... but I don't know how to fix it."

Tony sighed. "Where's yours?" He inquired.

Natasha smiled triumphantly. "Mine's in Wakanda."

She tossed Tony his phone, which was sitting on a table. "You are a genius," Tony said, smiling at her excitedly.

Tony quickly punched in the number Shuri had given him - _'only for emergencies!' _she had threatened. He held the phone to his ear.

_"Hello, you've reached the voicemail box of Shuri, please leave a message at the beep!"_

Tony rolled his eyes. "Shuri, no time. This is a legitimate emergency."

_"BEEEEP."_

"Shuri."

_"BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP."_

"It involves Peter."

_"Tell me what the fuck happened to my science bud or I'll murder you."_

"Aaaand that's what I thought. Peter was taken by HYDRA, made into a Winter... Spider, I guess. We need your algorithm to erase his trigger words. We're doing our best in the meantime. He's asleep right now."

_"Shit. Okay, I'll be there in 10 minutes. Sorry it won't be sooner, I'm in Wakanda. Wake him up. I'll bring a memory-restoring drug with me. Hopefully it will help, but Bucky is the only person I've had experience with in this... region."_

"Great, thanks. See you soon."

_"Bye. Please keep Peter alive until I get there, I actually like having a meme friend."_

"Yeah, I'll do my best. Bye."

_"ETA five minutes! Keep him alive, Stark!"_

Then came the beeping that indicated that the girl had hung up.

"Right. Now, Bruce, we don't have anything that can hold him, so... we just have to get this done quickly," Tony said. Bruce nodded quickly, and stepped back from Peter's side. Tony took the other doctor's place, and leaned down to gently tap Peter's shoulder. "Hey, kid. Sorry to interrupt your sleep. Can you wake up?" He asked softly

Peter let out a soft mumbling sound. "Kid?" Tony repeated. "I don't - I don't wanna go... please..." The kid whispered, tossing in a fitful sleep. Tony's eyes widened. He wasn't sure if this was a good thing or a bad thing. Clearly there was a subconscious part of him with the memories of Titan... and he was currently having a nightmare about it. "I'm sorry..." Peter finally muttered, and then he slumped back against the mattress of the bed.

"Shit," Sam said, kneeling beside Peter.

"Yeah. Alright, kid. Please wake up," Tony continued, gently shaking the boy. Peter slowly opened his eyes, then jerked up. "Where the fuck am I?" He asked angrily.

"STARK! WHERE'S MY FUCKING SCIENCE BUD?" A voice yelled from outside in the hall. Peter looked over, distracted.

"Sir, Shuri has arrived," FRIDAY said pleasantly. "Yeah, you don't fucking say," Tony muttered, swinging the door open. "In here!" He yelled. Shuri ran in through the door, holding a vial of some liquid, a small briefcase, and a computer tucked under her arm. "Oh god, oh no..." She whispered, dashing over to Peter. The girl tossed the case onto the ground and pulled it open. Inside was a small syringe, and a few other various medical items. Shuri grabbed the syringe and slowly approached the bed. "Hey, Peter," She said softly. "Remember me?" Peter blinked. "No..." He said defensively. "Okay... what if I say... 'two dudes, chillin' in a hot tub'," Shuri started to quote the Vine, but Peter interrupted quietly. "'Five feet apart 'cause they're not gay'," He finished. Shuri beamed. "Now do you remember me?" She asked.

Peter was silent for a few seconds. "Shuri..?" He asked, voice rising in uncertainty. Tony's eyes widened. "Yes!" Shuri cheered. "Good job, Peter. Now... I know this seems insane, but you were kidnapped by HYDRA. They're not saviors, despite what they may have led you to believe." Shuri looked at him expectantly.

"Why does everyone keep calling me Peter?" He asked finally. "It's your name..." Shuri replied, eyes darkening. "But... it's not," Peter said quietly. "Look, Peter. In this syringe, I have something that will return your memories. I can't force it on you, none of us can. But if you think what's happened today is weird enough, you can choose to trust me. So, what will it be?" Shuri inquired.

There was a moment of hesitation as Peter considered. Obviously logic - don't trust them - was at war with his instincts - trust them. Tony could see the two warring in the boy's eyes.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Dark Spider was incredibly afraid. What if he was wrong about them? His Spidey Senses weren't going off, though... so maybe they were legitimately trying to help?

But should he?

HYDRA would kill him.

This was a huge decision.

But he liked the name Peter better anyways, so...

"I'll trust you," Dark Spider - no, Peter - decided. The girl - Shuri, the one he remembered somehow - broke into a bright smile.

"I'm glad," She said. "Do you want to inject it, or..?" Shuri offered him the syringe. Peter took it warily. Still no Spidey Sense alerts. "Just so you know, the memories won't come all at once. The people you reverse-programmed - memories of them will come first - and probably immediately. But the ones you didn't... they'll come later. But I'm not sure if we can recover them."

Peter gulped. Hopefully he reverse-programmed everything important. Then, without dramatic effect, he stuck it into his arm and pushed the plunger.

There was a small silence.

And then the memories.

He was building Legos with Ned, and MJ was laughing while reading a book.

He was running around the city with Natasha, fighting off crime.

He was helping Clint prank Bucky when they stole his arm.

He was sitting in a room with Wanda as they talked about their lives.

He was sparring with Steve, trading notes on their New York childhoods.

He was laughing with Vision and Loki after they successfully pranked Thor.

T'Challa mock-yelling at he and Shuri after they annoyed the heck out of him screaming Vines all day.

Rhodey helping him with homework... but something was missing. That memory felt... different.

Was he missing something?

But the memories were still coming:

He was Peter.

He was Peter Parker.

And he was Spider-Man.

An Avenger.

But something was missing.

Peter looked up around the room at all the now-familiar faces. "Holy shi-itake mushrooms," He breathed, eyes wide. He listed off each person in his head.

Shuri. Natasha. Bucky. Wanda. Clint. Vision. Scott. Steve. Sam. MJ. Rhodey. Bruce. And... some unfamiliar guy.

"Okay, I think it worked..." Peter said, frowning in the direction of the unfamiliar person. Wait! That was Tony Stark. Right. Peter supposed being knocked out did not do wonders for his recognition.

MJ beamed at him. "I'm glad you're better, loser," She said, trying to stay calm, but the small tear of happiness trailing down the side of her face gave her away. "Thanks, MJ," Peter said, grinning back.

"So, can you name the people in this room?" Shuri asked.

"Okay. You're Shuri. She's MJ. That's Auntie Tasha, over there is Uncle Bucky. Wanda is in the corner of the room. Uncle Clint is sitting there. Vision is in that chair. Uncle Scott is sitting on the ground. There's Uncle Steve, and Uncle Sam. Uncle Rhodey is over there. Uncle Bruce is standing by the IV pump. And... uh, Tony Stark, right? He's right here," Peter announced.

Tony flinched, and Peter looked over at him, confused. "Peter," Natasha said gently. "I think... I, well, basically, you've... forgotten him," She finished awkwardly. Peter's cheeks burned. "Oh," He replied. He couldn't force any other words out. "Был ли он важен?" Peter inquired, hoping that Tony didn't understand Russian. **Translation: "was he important?"**

Natasha looked at him sadly. "да ... он в основном твой отец фигура..." She trailed off. **Translation: "Yes... he is basically your father figure..." **Peter's eyes widened. When he was reverse programming - which he didn't quite remember - why did he forget to do his own father??

Peter was mentally slapping himself. Of course he'd have to go be an idiot like that.

He was going to lost another father figure.

First his real dad. Then Uncle Ben.

And now...

Someone he couldn't even remember.

"Uh - Mr. Stark?" Peter asked quietly. The man winced, but looked over at him. "Yeah, Peter?" He asked. "I'm sorry."

Tony sighed. "Kid, don't be sorry. I'm just glad you're okay," He said, but Peter could detect undertones of sadness in his voice. "But - I should have done something, tried harder to remember you-" He was cut off by the man. "Peter. Stop apologizing."

Something tugged in the back of his mind. Peter gasped. "Actually, I think I do remember you! Or, at least, something about you." _Stop apologizing... _"What gives?" Tony asked. "I, uh... I have to stop apologizing," Peter said, blushing. Tony laughed. "Of course," He said, smiling. "You _do _apologize too much."

Peter smiled finally, taking a deep breath. "Okay, um... so I got my memories back... but what about the trigger words?" He inquired. MJ tossed Shuri a cube of metal. She tapped it twice, and it expanded into a small device. "We get rid of those," The girl said confidently. Peter raised an eyebrow. "Yeah, but... how?" He queried. "Take this, it'll help," Shuri said, shoving a vial of some sort of liquid at him. "Okay?" Peter said skeptically, before pulling off the lid and drowning the fluid.

"Oh, this feels weird," He said after a moment. A tingling sensation flooded through his body.

"Yeah, it'll feel weird for a bit," Shuri said sympathetically. Peter's muscles suddenly gave out, and he fell back into the bed before his vision slowly went black and he fell into unconsciousness.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

**Shuri's POV**  
**(You didn't see that coming?)**

Shuri sighed, then turned to her suitcase to grab a jar of nanobots. "Shuri, what the hell did you do to Peter?" Sam asked, sounding worried. "Knocked him out. He's not going to want to be awake for this," Shuri replied, opening the lid. She pressed a button on her computer, and the nanobots formed themselves into a small disk. Shuri quickly put the disk against Peter's temple.

She took the device that MJ gave her and plugged it into her computer. Instantly, brain scans started to pop up. Shuri scrolled through a few, then selected the one that looked best. She ignored the thalamus and a few parts of the cortex - those were dreams. The girl zoomed in on the hippocampus. "Wait..." Shuri said, confused. She moved around the brain scan, returned to the hippocampus, then pulled up two more tabs and focused them on the amygdala and the neocortex.

Shuri stared at the results. "Okay, this is... new. Instead of blunt force causing hysterical and retrograde amnesia, they've suppressed some parts of the brain. The part that connects the hippocampus, amygdala, and neocortex to each other. Because of that, the limbic system is... unable to access the memories made before the trauma, until I brought the serum. However, the injection I gave him is making that better, very slowly. Now, inside this blockade is the trigger words. Those parts of the suppression are still there. However, I think I can fix this..."

The Avengers all blinked. "Was that English? I don't think that was English," Clint stated. Shuri grinned. "It was science," Bruce and Tony replied in unison. They high-fived each other. "I understood part of it," Tony said, and Bruce nodded agreement. "Not a lot, though," He added.

Shuri looked at her briefcase, and pulled out more nanobots. "Scott, give me your shrinking-disk thingies. I know Hank gave you some." Scott blinked, then reached into his pocket, pulled out his suit, enlarged the suit, and pulled a small disk out of a pocket in the suit. He handed it to Shuri, and the girl pressed the activation button and touched the nanobots to the disk. They instantly shrank, so that they were so small that they were almost molecular. She deactivated the disk and put it in her case so she could study it later - Shuri already figured out the tech, she just wanted to cross-reference it with Hank's - figuring Scott wouldn't notice (he didn't).

Shuri pulled out her computer and slowly moved the zeptobots into the disk, then through the skin cells into Peter's bloodstream, and that quickly reached his brain. Moving them into the membrane of Peter's brain cells, she quickly dismantled the block HYDRA had on his brain. The small connection to the trigger words shrank quickly, then disappeared.

Shuri exhaled slowly. She was nervous that it wasn't going to work. "Okay, the trigger words are gone. I'm going to send the nanobots - well, now zeptobots, really - into the memory suppression. I didn't think I could do this, but thanks to Scott's shrinking technology, I think..." Shuri sent the zeptobots into Peter's amygdala, then to the connection between the amygdala, neocortex, and hippocampus. "And... done."

The others all stared at each other, then looked at her. "It was that easy?" Sam asked. "Oh, 'easy' would not be the word for it. It took me forever to come up with that memory serum. Thankfully, I made an extra," Shuri replied, rolling her eyes.

Tony came over and Shuri hugged him quickly. Then she guided the zeptobots out of Peter's brain and into the disk. The girl picked up the disk, smiled at the Avengers, and pressed another button, causing Peter to wake up.

"Shuri, what the hell?" was the first thing he said. Shuri grinned at him. "I just _fixed _you, thank you very much." Peter looked around the room, then looked at Tony and gasped. "Ohmygod, Mr. Stark! I'm so sorry!" He exclaimed, eyes widening in recognition. Tony rolled his eyes. "I _said_, stop apologizing. I'm just glad you're back."

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

**Peter's POV**

It had been a few days since Peter had remembered Tony. And everyone and everything else. And now, they were setting out to find the people who kidnapped him. They were riding the Quinjet to the place Peter remembered leaving from.

They all filed out from the jet silently, and Steve stepped up and gave a quick speech.

"Alright guys. These guys need to be taken care of. And we will win this, because this is for Peter. He's our teammate, our friend, but most of all, he is our _family_. So with that, let's do this. Remember, get hurt, hurt 'em back. You get killed..." Steve looked majestically into the distance. "Walk it off."

"Peter, would you like to do the honors?" The man asked.

"Yeah!" Peter exclaimed.

"Avengers!" He said seriously, before breaking into a grin.

"Assemble."

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

**Tony's POV**

Tony was so proud of his son. Peter had dealt with everything with immense maturity and strength, but still remained the adorable, happy teen he was before. _'_

_It didn't hurt,' _Peter had said. _'It was weird, and it sucked, yeah, but they must have changed something, because it didn't hurt.'_

They didn't exactly keep the whole stealthy thing up, because a few minutes later, a ton of HYDRA soldiers came running. Peter, in the Iron Spider suit, webbed them to trees and the ground, and Steve took care of the rest with his shield. "Not very well trained, huh?" Tony muttered, lowering his hand.

They went in directly through the front door, like Steve had so many years ago.

The HYDRA agents were easy to defeat. They all got to play a part in taking care of those.

It was when they got to the basement that it got hard. They all ran into the room (after taking the stairs - or, in Peter's case, the walls), and saw Zemo and Pierce behind a wall of bulletproof glass, toting guns and standing in front of a row of computers. Pierce looked up to see the Avengers, and they must have looked like death in human form, because he paled markedly. Zemo looked up, smirked, and moved to a computer. "Hello, Avengers!" The man said through a microphone. Tony glared in response. He wasn't going to try and hide his hatred for the man. 

"So. I'm sure you're wondering why I don't seem nervous," Zemo said conversationally. "No, not really," Bucky replied, annoyed. 

"So. You've convinced Dark Spider to be on your side. Convinced him that he's 'Peter'. But you forgotten one thing. Happy. Alone," The man started. Tony fired at the glass, but it didn't budge. They all started attacking it, apart from one person.

Tony glanced over at Peter, who had seemed to stiffen at the words. "Radioactive. Restart. One." Zemo continued. "Stop," Peter said angrily. "Dormant," He continued, smirking. Peter started to move forward, preparing to punch through the glass. "Nine. Far. Seven. Street!" Zemo finished quickly.

Peter went completely still.

"Soldier?" Zemo asked. 

"Ready to comply," Peter said robotically.

_What the hell, what the hell, what the hell? _ Tony's mind asked on repeat.

"Get in here. Cover our exit," Pierce commanded. "Kill the Avengers, or at least one, once they make it through the glass," Zemo added. "Yes, sir," Peter said, lowering his eyes. 

The door slid open, and Peter ran to them, door shutting afterward. Zemo turned to the Avengers, who were frantically trying to make their way through.

"Until next time," Zemo said, smirking. The two turned to go, and Peter looked over at the Avengers, moving into a fighting stance.

And then spun and punched Pierce in the head, sending him flying across the room into the wall. "Taser webs!" Peter yelped, then shot those at Zemo, who fell to the ground in a dodge. "Sir, I'm afraid your contract has expired," He said, dodging a gunshot. 

Peter webbed the gun out of Zemo's hand. "Whoa, this is so cool!" Peter exclaimed, looking at the various switches. Then he threw the gun away from him, to the opposite side of the room. Peter blocked a punch from the man, then kicked him to the ground. "Next time you try to do that mind control shit on me, make sure it's still _working,_" Peter said patronizingly. 

Zemo flipped up off the ground and kicked Peter hard in the chest. Peter just stared at him. "Dude, you really suck at that," He said, then dodged another punch. 

Tony just watched this little fight. Zemo had no chance. Natasha was smirking, and Clint was about to start laughing. 

Needless to say, Peter finally won when he knocked the man unconscious, deciding to pull his punches _ever so slightly _less. 

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Peter webbed the two men to the wall, then turned to the Avengers, pushing a button to open the doors. 

"Nice work, kid," Tony said, smiling at him.

Peter huffed with laughter. "Not the first time you've said that to me," He replied, grinning. Tony looked confused. "Well duh, you've done pretty well on other missions," He said slowly. "No, I mean when I was a kid," Peter pointed out. "What? You're still the same age as when I met you, 15." Tony frowned. 

"Nah, when I was like, 7, I think. The Stark Expo? That kid that tried to blow up that Hammer Drone? Yeah, that was me." 

Tony's eyes widened. "That was _you_?" He asked in disbelief. "Yep!" Peter said cheerfully.

"Jeez, kid. You almost died!" Tony exclaimed. Peter leveled a bemused stare at him. "Like I don't do that almost every day now?" He inquired. "_What._" Peter's eyes widened. "Oh! Auntie Tasha! Look at the time! Let's call up Nick Fury, this webbing should last a few hours! Ha, when they were making it organic in the experimentation, they didn't consider I would use it against them." 

"Wait, they're organic?" Clint asked. "Yeah! It's super cool, I can show you when we get back," Peter declared. "_Awesome._"

"Peter," Tony interrupted. "You almost die every day?" "Ah, I'm Spider-Man! It's fine, ya know? Nothing _toooo _big!" 

Peter mentally flashed back to a few days before the kidnapping, when he'd been shot thirteen times by a machine gun. And a while ago when he'd been impaled by like ten knives. 

"Nothing too big," Peter repeated in what he hoped was a pleasant tone.

"Gosh, kid, you're gonna give me gray hairs," Tony said, pulling him into a side hug. Peter grinned cheekily at him. "You already have some," He pointed out. 

"You son of a bitch-" Tony gasped. "Mr. Stark! I would never call you that word!" Peter exclaimed.

He immediately blushed. "Ahem, that's not exactly what I- I mean, yeah I do think of you like a father I guess but I mean it's okay if you don't think of me as a son or anything, I just think that you're a good role model, and I know I'm not really good enough but- uh, sorry, Mr. Stark, gotta get to the jet, bye-" 

Peter's rambling was cut off by Tony pulling him into a hug. "Kid, you _are _like a son to me. Don't _ever _think you aren't good enough, because you're a perfect child and we all love you. Got it?"

Peter started to smile. "Got it," He said, hugging his father-figure back.

**Bonus Scene (this is in texts):**

**Tony:**  
Pepper, Code Spidey is a go! Get the adoption papers!

**Pepper:**  
You finally admitted it to each other, huh?

**Tony:**

More like he finally admitted it to me.  
Immediately freaked out afterward, too.

**Pepper:**

The papers are on your desk.

**Tony:**  
Thanks, Pep

**Pepper:**  
I'm just glad you finally grew a pair and told him  
that you thought of him as a son.

**Tony:**  
...shut up

**Pepper:**  
Someone's salty, huh? I'll see you soon.

**Tony:**

See you  
_Read 2:03 pm_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't like killing off May... so I just send her on vacation or something. I'm not going to relentlessly murder a good character for plot convenience.
> 
> Anyways, hope you enjoyed that! It felt sufficiently angsty and that Peter was able to have a role in saving himself.
> 
> Have a great day/night!


	12. Kind of Like a Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Far From Home/Endgame fix-it. Lots of angst and drama, but also a ton of fluff. Let's just go with Natasha's still alive because they returned the stones. Peter's secret identity is still intact though. Very superfamily, civil war didn't really happen. Peter primarily lives at the Compound, but since Endgame he was over more at May's.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This entire chapter's about to give you some serious whiplash.

Mysterio was dead.

Probably.

Peter had just finished destroying the rest of the drones and found a recording device, which he promptly disposed of. He didn't want any more truth to be twisted around. 

That was an excellent decision, even though he didn't know it.

"Mr. Parker, someone has entered the premises," EDITH told him quickly through the glasses. Peter narrowed his eyes, searching through the destruction for a hint of movement. Was this just another trick?

When he finally caught a glimpse of a person, Peter was unprepared. 

"Hey, kid!" A familiar voice, soft with concern and happiness. 

Peter could barely form any words. "Mr. Stark?"

Tony's face broke into an grin. "The one and only!"

Peter inspected him, altogether confused and hopeful and yet utterly exhausted. 

"I know it's pretty crazy, I'm not dead, but I got hooked up with this super cool metal arm, it looks realistic, and-" "Stop." 

Tony broke off as soon as Peter spoke. Shock had registered in his eyes, as well as confusion. 

"You're not even real, are you? I already told you, you can't trick me anymore!" Peter said, searching for any sign of Beck in the ruins as he started to cry.

"W-what are you talking about? Underoos, I-" 

Peter stood up, gasping at the bullet wound as it sent waves of pain through him, and stalked toward Tony.

Well, not Tony.

"Stop. Playing. Dumb. I've had enough of your stupid games! You tried to kill me, and then kill every single person I've ever loved! Using the _real _ Mr. Stark's tech. And if that's not enough, you torture me - of course one of the last things you've said to me until now is that I'm a disappointment. And _now _ you try to do this? Haven't you done enough, _Mr. Beck?_ "

Peter's voice was trembling through the whole thing, with a mixture of anger and sadness, tears starting to drip down his face.

"Kid, I'm not-" Tony reached out a hand placatingly. 

Peter flinched away. Hearing Tony's voice so injured and worried made it feel like the man was back alive. 

"Just leave me alone!" He yelled, clutching his mask in one hand so tightly that his knuckles were whitening and the fabric was starting to rip.

Peter turned to run away, leaving Tony standing there, alone.

Leaving Mysterio there, with his last illusion he'd ever make now that Peter was back in control.

**Tony's POV**

"What the hell happened to you?"

Tony started to move after Peter, who was rapidly running out of view. 

Tony slowly raised a hand to his ear, where a small earpiece connected to FRIDAY was.

"Call the Avengers. We have an issue."

\-------

Tony sat at the head of the table, staring at the people assembled.

"The time I was... out. In the coma. Nobody told him I wasn't dead?" He cast a look around the table. 

Nobody volunteered an answer. 

Tony dropped his head into his hands. "Great. And now it's too late."

Natasha sighed. Peter wouldn't know she was alive either, and apparently he had been devastated when he'd first heard.

She looked accusingly around the table, at everyone except Tony. "I was dead most of the time it happened. What were you guys thinking?"

Sam dropped his eyes to stare at the floor. "We didn't realize... he left and then went to Europe and we couldn't get to him."

Tony scoffed. "We have planes for a reason. And Fury got to him, so how couldn't you? He didn't know I was alive while he was over there!"

Again, everyone was silent.

"Do you even know what he's been through?" Natasha asked the table threateningly. "Why didn't any of you even bother to check up and help him, especially while he was in Europe with the giant monsters! And then he was tricked and betrayed by a guy called Mysterio!" 

**Haha Mysterio was the 666th word.**

Guilty looks spread over the faces of everyone at the table.

Natasha rolled her eyes. "You guys are useless. And now he doesn't know what is real," She stated. Tony stood up angrily. "We have to find him. If you guys had done something, he wouldn't be like this!" The man added.

Steve finally spoke. "I understand that we messed up. But we can't go blaming each other for things now. We have to help Peter."

**Peter's POV**

Peter was finally back in classes. After the incident with Mysterio - particularly when he was masquerading as Tony - things hadn't quite been the same. 

Nightmares were now a nightly business. 

_"If you were good enough, maybe Tony would still be alive."_

_"I mean, look at yourself. You are just a scared little kid in a sweatsuit!"_

_"It's easy to fool people if they're already fooling themselves."_

_"I trusted you." "I know. And that's the most disappointing part."_

_"They'll believe anything."_

Peter supposed he was justified in that realm, he was shot multiple times and hit by a train, and thrown off a building and such.

But that wasn't the worst of it.

_"Hey, kid!"_

_"Underoos-"_

_"The one and only."_

It was never going to happen again.

Right?

\----------

"Peter."

Another voice on the way to school. 

Or rather, the same one.

"Underoos, we have to talk," Tony said.

Mysterio said.

"What are you even doing? Why are you still here? The only reason I haven't done anything is because you're not actively trying to hurt anyone, or kill them!" Peter cried, turning away.

A firm hand fell on his shoulders, reminiscent of the day they first met.

"Kid, it's me. Really. What do I have to do to convince you?"

Peter watched, horror struck, as tears started to form in both of their eyes.

"I can't let you trick me again, Quentin. You betrayed me. I'm doing you a huge favor by not ending you right now. Turning you in to the police. Not that I could, because I can't reveal my identity. But I would."

Beck/Tony stared at Peter, realistically distressed. 

"Peter, I-"

"Just drop it. It's not real."

\----------

Peter walked out of school - Ned and MJ had already left.

He was halfway to May's house when a distinctive cough came from the alleyway.

"Hey, little spider."

Dread and hope were warring inside Peter as he turned to look at his aunt, leaning casually against a wall.

"You're dead," Peter stated, trying to make himself believe it. "My aunt is dead."

Natasha's face morphed into one of sympathy. "маленький паук, I know it's hard to believe."

She was studying his face the way she always did, and decided to stay back.

It was good that she did, Peter couldn't have handled it otherwise.

"Are you done yet?" He asked flatly. A bit of surprise sparked in Natasha's eyes, but she seemed to have expected it.

"I know what Mysterio did to you. But let me tell you what happened. And then, if you don't believe me, you can leave."

Peter hesitantly remained in place, but on edge and waiting for any Spidey Sense alerts. 

"I died getting the Soul Stone. But it was an exchange. A soul for a soul. Return a soul, and you get one back. So when Steve took them back, I came back." Peter eyed her warily. "Tony was in a coma from the stones. Nobody told you. I would've, but," Natasha laughed wryly. "I couldn't have, for obvious reasons."

Peter eyed her warily. "If you're really Natasha... then tell me something only she and I would know."

Natasha looked thoughtful for a few seconds. "We were patrolling, and you were talking to me, and you swung right into a building."

Peter flushed. "Anyone could have seen that."

"Not everyone would know I was there," Natasha countered.

"One day you told me that you had a man-crush on Thor. You helped me prank Clint and dye his hair green. I came to all your Decathlon meets and talked to you after, even though nobody else saw me. You introduced MJ to me, and the first thing she said was 'Wow, that's Natasha fucking Romanoff'. We were training and you tore your shirt, so I gave you one of mine and you told me it would be one of your prized possessions. You-"

Peter cut her off by folding himself into a tight hug with her. She was tangible, she was here, she was _real._

_"You are so gullible. I mean, smart as a whip. Just a... sucker."_

Peter recoiled quickly as the memory resurfaced. Natasha let him, clearly not wanting to scare him. "Peter? What's wrong?"

"Are you real?" He checked one more time. It seemed like a stupid question, but he needed to hear it one more time.

"Yes. Peter, I'm real."

Then he was crying again but Natasha was there once more to pull him into a soothing hug. 

"It's okay, маленький паук. I'm here."

\---------

"So... wait, that Mr. Stark I saw in London wasn't an illusion?" Peter asked as they walked downtown. 

"Ah... no, he wasn't. Although I would've thought the same."

"And the one the other day?"

"Nope."

Peter buried his head in his hands. "I'm so stupid. I should've known..."

Natasha touched his shoulder gently. "You couldn't have. After everything you've been through, I'm surprised you're still functioning. You're probably the strongest person I've ever known," She told him. 

The compound loomed in front of them soon, and Peter's heart was racing.

_Please don't be an illusion, please, please..._

"Hey, Pete," Steve said, sitting solemnly on a bench. As soon as he had returned the stones, Natasha had told him, he had come directly back with her.

"Uncle Steve," Peter breathed, flinging his arms around the man. "I missed you... I'm so sorry I didn't visit..."

Steve ruffled his hair. "Don't worry, kid. I'm sorry I wasn't there to help."

They made it to the kitchen.

And sitting upright on a stool was none other than Tony Stark.

Peter's breath hitched, and he felt his heart speed up. 

"Hey, kid," Tony said for the third time in a few weeks.

_"If you were good enough, maybe Tony would still be alive."_

Tony exchanged a glance with Natasha, then smiled comfortingly at Peter. "It's me."

_Is it, though? Is it really you? Or am I being played for a fool again?_

"Mr. Stark?" Peter managed, hoping desperately that it was real.

Tony spread his arms out, and Peter folded into them, crying in relief and desperation. 

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, I wasn't good enough, you were hurt-" Peter stammered through his tears. "Kid, what are you talking about? You did everything right."

Peter ducked his head. "But I gave away your glasses, and got hit by a train, and-"

"I'm sorry, you got hit by what now? Never mind. We'll discuss it later. EDITH is replaceable. You are not."

Peter started crying again.

"Stay here?" Tony asked.

"I'll text May that I'm back to living here."

\------------

Peter was chatting excitedly in the common room with the Avengers. 

Tony walked over with an easy grin. "So, you told who about Spider-Man? And the illusions?"

Peter froze at the familiar words that Beck had also said the basics of. 

_It's Tony. This is fine. I'm safe._

"Well, I told MJ and Ned. Ned had a girlfriend at the time, so I'm not sure if she knows. But then Happy figured out the illusions and probably May now, too."

Tony chuckled, ruffling Peter's hair again.

A chill swept through the room, raising goosebumps on Peter's skin.

"Peter. Like I said, you're smart. But too gullible. Too trustful. How do you know that any time has even passed?"

Blackness covered Peter's vision, and Mysterio had replaced Tony.

"You think you know what's going on. But you _don't. _ Did you ever even leave London?"

The scene rippled, and Peter was standing back in the Tower Bridge, in the middle of all the destruction.

"No..." Peter breathed, frantically looking around. He was still in his Spider-Man suit, the one he had made with Happy. 

Had he ever really left?

"And now I have two other people that you would tell the story. Two other targets to be eliminated."

Peter was standing on the roof of a building again. He watched as Beck ordered his drones to shoot Ned and Betty. Throw MJ off the side of the building. Aunt May and Happy bombed in the middle of the road below.

"This isn't - it isn't real, you're dead! I saw you die!" Mysterio chuckled as the area around him faded to black, and it was only the two of them.

"I don't think you know what's real," He sneered. Peter punched at him, only for it to go right through him.

Mysterio blasted Peter back into a wall. He shot a web at the illusionist, and pulled the man toward him with all his strength. There was a creaking sound, and Peter dodged out of the way as a large building came crashing down toward him.

"I know what's real. You're _dead_ !" Peter exclaimed, fully aware that desperation had entered his voice. 

"You're right," Mysterio said abruptly.

Peter sat up in his bed, distraught and alone.

He fumbled his way into the hallway.

"It was just a dream," Peter told himself. "FRIDAY? Where's Tony?" He asked.

"Boss is in the lab," The AI replied. Peter made his way down to the lab and slid open the door.

"Hey, Mr. Stark," Peter said hoarsely. Tony looked up from his work and smiled at him.

"What's up, Peter?" He inquired. "I, uh, just had a nightmare. About, you know, Mysterio."

Tony beckoned for Peter to come closer, and Peter went for the hug. They had a sweet moment until Tony pulled back.

Tony's face contorted. "You're pathetic," He spat. Peter's eyes widened. "You can't even get through a small fight without scaring yourself. Can't you do anything?" Tony continued. 

Peter recoiled, backing up against the wall. "M-Mr. Stark?" He asked, voice trembling. 

"You're useless. I can't believe I ever saw anything in you."

Peter started to cry. 

"Remember when I said I was the only one to believe in you? That was true. It's a shame I don't believe in you anymore." Every single one of Tony's words was like a knife.

"You want to know _when _ I lost hope in you?" Tony continued angrily. 

"N-no," Peter whimpered, hating the look of savage satisfaction on Tony's face.

"Probably Titan, don't you think?" 

Peter shook his head, vision blurred with tears, not wanting to hear about the war he had died in.

"You couldn't even live through that. You couldn't get the gauntlet. You barely made it through any fight for more than two seconds."

Peter paled, huddling in the corner.

"I don't - please, Mr. Stark! I didn't mean to!" 

"You said it yourself. You weren't good enough. News flash! You're never _going _ to be."

Tears were dripping down Peter's cheeks. Exactly what he thought about himself, confirmed by Tony. Then he saw Tony's face glitch for a moment.

"Pretty sure this isn't real," He muttered through his tears. "Pretty sure."

"I thought you said you knew what was real," Mysterio announced through Tony, smugness evident in his tone.

"Leave me alone!" Peter yelled, lashing out at the air around him.

Tony approached slowly. "A perfect disguise, don't you think? You could never hurt your own father," Beck said scornfully.

"Peter?" Tony asked, walking into the lab. 

The real Tony?

Beck-Tony smirked. "And here he is now!" Tony looked up at Beck-Tony, shock in his eyes. "What the hell?"

Before Tony could move, Beck-Tony was behind him and then a knife was sticking through Tony's gut.

Peter cried out, reaching for Tony, who was collapsing onto the ground, blood pooling around him.

"What a disappointment!" Beck exclaimed. "Still, with a second chance, you couldn't save him!"

Peter flinched hard as he started to cry once more.

And then he was sitting up in bed again.

"Peter?" Tony asked, kneeling beside him in concern.

Peter recoiled, jumping back against the wall.

"Stop!" He yelled desperately. "I don't want to go through this anymore!"

Tony frowned, confused. "Kid, are you okay?"

"Are you just going to keep trying this? At some point, I'm going to realize that I wasn't dreaming! I know you're still here, Mr. Beck! Please just stop!" Peter wailed, starting to cry.

"Kid, I thought we told you. I was in a coma. Natasha came back with Steve, not the Soul Stone."

Peter frowned. Could Mysterio know that? Or was he still fabricating things?

Had the past days been an illusion?

Weeks?

Even months?

"What's going on?" Peter asked Probably-Not-Tony.

"You were... having a nightmare. Are you okay?" 

Peter scoffed. "Get some originality. That's what you played last time." 

Probably-Not-Tony grinned a bit, but it was quickly overlapped with concern and determination. "When I recruited you for a possible war, I invaded your house and was eating your aunt's bread. The war didn't end up happening, but I'd already decided I loved you. As a son. So the first thing I said to you after it was 'You were my good luck charm, Underoos'."

Peter stared at Maybe-Tony as the man started blurting out all their life experiences.

"One day in the labs you blew up a prototype for a new web-shooter. You cursed, and then Steve walked in to say his Language™. He figured out you were Spider-Man when he saw the blueprints. He started to say something about children being dangerous on the Avengers. You told him it was as cold as the ice he was frozen in for 70 years. Steve left the room, embarrassed."

Peter edged slowly closer to Probably-Tony.

"And when I took your suit I said if you were nothing without it then you shouldn't have it. But later I told you I never believed that you were ever nothing without the suit. Because you were also Peter Parker, not Spider-Man."

Definitely Tony. Peter hugged him tightly and tried to hide his tears.

"I'm so sorry - I just don't know what to do! I don't know how to tell real from fake, what I know and what's an illusion."

Tony smiled. "It's a good thing we have someone in the compound that's relatively experienced in that."

\-----------

Peter was having sessions with Bucky. They were working surprisingly well. Almost the entire time, he was able to tell when he actually woke up from a nightmare and when he wasn't.

Sadly, there were still times when he woke, confused and afraid, having to be consoled by his teammates. 

His family.

**Aww, family was the 3000th word <3**

At some point in the chaos, Peter had stopped going to school after experiencing many panic attacks when he saw his class.

Today was his first day back.

And, unsurprisingly, they had decided to make a big production of it.

And they wouldn't take no for an answer.

Peter got into a car with Tony, and Natasha revved her motorcycle behind them. Bruce was driving his car, and Steve and Bucky each had motorcycles of their own. Sam had decided to fly in.

Clint was using a cool motorbike they had picked up on a mission, and Wanda would fly with Vision, Pietro running beneath them.

Rhodey was using the War Machine suit at Tony's request, and Pepper was tagging along too, although in a sane way - shotgun in Tony's car in a business outfit.

Thor and Loki were going to "Bifrost" in, whatever that meant.

**If I'm forgetting anyone, I'm really sorry haha**

So Peter was considering buying a mask and hiding.

Or moving to Wakanda with Shuri. The girl had offered, anyways.

But that morning, Tony had roused him from his bed and gave him a smirk. "Let's do this."

Peter groaned and hid inside the car as soon as he finished breakfast. 

A few minutes later, they were at Midtown. Peter grabbed his backpack and tried to get out as inconspicuously as possible. However, when you're with all of the Avengers, inconspicuous doesn't exactly work.

Tony kicked open his door dramatically and opened Peter's, grinning. 

Natasha, on her motorcycle, helped Peter out and rolled her eyes at the team. 

"Is there a reason we've decided to do this?" She inquired.

"Just because," Sam told her, landing cleanly on the ground.

Natasha sighed. "Let's just find the principal. I'm going to be staying with Peter today. The rest of you will get your turns."

Principal Morita had been shocked when all the Avengers - minus Spider-Man for obvious reasons - had crowded into his office.

"Hello, I'm Tony Stark. I trust you've heard of me." 

He had dropped his papers on his desk and looked at Tony in shock. "I- uh, yes, I have. What do you need?" Morita inquired quickly.

"One of us," Natasha told him, gesturing at the Avengers, "will be with him every day."

Morita stared at Peter. "I, uh, that is allowed I suppose, but you need a signed letter by a guardian explaining why."

Tony sighed loudly. "That is confidential. And here you go," He said, pointing at Natasha.

"We've all been registered as backup guardians and co-guardians," She said, placing a paper down on the principal's desk. All it said was 'The information you inquired for is confidential, under law and the Strategic Homeland Intervention Enforcement and Logistics Division confidentiality system. Natasha Romanoff.'

Morita had reluctantly agreed.

Hence the chaos.

Natasha strolled into class with Peter and sat down next to him. Ned had come in to sit and gave him a surprised look and a hug. 

"Peter!" He exclaimed. "You're back!" 

Peter grinned, having missed his best friend. "Yep."

Ned noticed Natasha sitting there and his shock increased. "Okay, should I even question this?"

Peter just shook his head silently, and Natasha looked over and grinned at Ned.

"Oooh! That's your girlfriend, right?" She whispered, attention momentarily diverted.. Peter looked over and saw MJ entering the classroom. 

MJ caught sight of him and grinned, excitement showing in her eyes until it was stomped down. She walked over and dropped her stuff on a desk next to Peter's. 

"Sup, loser?" She asked, hiding a smirk. 

"Hey, MJ," Peter replied, equally amused. 

Natasha raised an eyebrow pointedly. "Oh! Uh, this is my aunt, Natasha! My family has decided that they need to stalk me at school for some reason," Peter added hastily, smiling.

MJ, careful and controlled in her reactions and emotions as always, smirked. "Cool."

\------------

Then, of course, came the day Peter terribly wanted to avoid at all costs.

The one he knew would happen eventually.

The day Tony accompanied him to school.

Waking up, Peter dressed to try and avoid attention. Of course, Tony would have other ideas. He wasn't exactly known for his subtlety. 

Peter jumped into the car and they drove out to Midtown.

Tony stepped out of the car with his paparazzi smile. Reporters were swarming them. Typically when out together they were more inconspicuous, but something like the Avengers following a kid around was not going unnoticed.

"Mr. Stark! Who is this kid?"

"Mr. Stark! Why are you following him?"

"Mr. Stark! What is this kid to you?"

Tony smirked at the questions, until his face changed, growing darker.

"I can answer all those questions," He said smugly.

"His name is Peter Parker. I'm following him because he's too _useless _ to deal with a villain on his own. What is he to me? He's a burden. The team likes him for whatever reason, but they all know the truth. He only drags us down. He is not good enough."

Peter paled at the words. "Mr. Stark," He managed, cringing at the quiet desperation in his voice. 

"Oh, do shut up. Crying like a baby as soon as someone tells you the blunt truth. You contribute nothing. You're smart. Really. But you can't see past your own desperation," Tony lectured, face contorted into a glare.

"You don't-" Peter faltered. _You don't mean that._

"Oh, but I do. You're trapped in a web. Rather ironic, isn't it?" Tony's voice had changed, to a more sardonic glee and amusement. 

"Caught in the one thing you try to use to save other people. Emphasis there on _try. _You can't save anyone. You're not worth it. You are a failure, bottom line," He elaborated. 

Tony was right.

He couldn't do anything correctly.

No. This wasn't Tony. Tony wouldn't do this to him.

"I see you've figured it out. Every single time! You think you've escaped, but you're wrong."

Something happened to the scene, and Tony started to ripple, turning into an Ultron.

"You're a puppet. Tangled in strings," It claimed.

Then Peter was yanked into the sky by his own webs, helpless to escape.

"Strings..." The robot mused.

Peter choked back a sob. He didn't know what was real. Did Bucky ever really teach him about how to avoid dreams? Dreams that weren't dreams but still seemed too far away to be classified as real. Were they real? Who knew? Not Peter, that was for sure.

Peter's crying turned into a hysterical laugh at that train of thought.

"You know what was most disappointing about you?" Mysterio taunted, slowly forming in place of the Ultron. 

"The fact that, time after time, you still think you've escaped. You haven't even left!"

The familiar sound of a train horn came, and then Peter was thrown against an invisible wall with a horrible crack.

"I can't-" Peter gasped, clutching at his side with the free hand that wasn't tangled in a web.

Is this real?

Is any of this real?

And once again, Peter had sat bolt upright in his bed.

_Is it real?_

Tony was at his side, speaking softly. 

"Are you okay, kid?" He whispered. Peter frowned. "Are you real?" Tony's concerned look mixed with sympathy. The man started rubbing Peter's back. "Another nightmare?" He asked quietly.

Peter fixed Tony with a stare.

_Is it real?_

"Bucky's in the other room. Do you need me to get him?

Peter looked around his room, eyes narrowed, searching for any detail that could possibly be wrong.

_Is it real?_

He couldn't find anything out of place.

_Is it real? Is it real? Is it real?_

"I don't-" Peter sobbed as he flinched away from Tony. "I don't know if any of this is real!"

Tony put a grounding hand on Peter's shoulder. 

"I'm real, kid."

Peter met his eyes, sparking with hope. 

_It's real?_

"I'm real," Tony repeated. Peter took a shaky breath. 

"No," He whispered. "You're not."

A laugh echoed around the room as it turned black. "Wow, congratulations! For the first time, you've proved yourself to not be a completely gullible, scared kid!"

Peter's eyes blurred with returning tears. "What gave it away this time? Do tell. I thought I did quite a good job!"

He awoke when Tony kicked the door open. "What's going on? FRIDAY said you were having a really bad nightmare. Do I need to kill someone? Get Bucky?"

Peter closed his eyes and pressed himself against the wall. The same offer of getting Bucky.

"You're doing a great job, Mr. Beck. Practice makes perfect, you know. Maybe someday I'll actually believe you again."

A hesitant voice. "Kid?"

"I know you're not real. You can't make me believe you anymore."

Beck's chilling laughter came again. "Not bad! You really aren't the same as I thought you were!"

He was right. Of course he was. What was going on? Was Peter ever going to get back to real life? Unless, of course, this was real life and he was simply trying to believe Mysterio that he actually had a family in the Avengers that cared about him.

Peter kept his eyes closed. Voices came and went.

Tony, May, Natasha, Steve, Bucky, Bruce, Rhodey - all of them at some point.

All of them lies.

Peter cracked open his eyes at one point, only to 'wake up' again.

"Peter's Personal Panic Parlour, how can I help you?" He asked dryly as Tony walked into the room.

The man turned around and left for a split second, before walking back in with an exasperated grin. 

"Orphan jokes, nihilistic humor, now this? Can't stop you from making bad jokes, huh?" Tony inquired. Peter raised an eyebrow. More realistic than some of the things Beck had done. 

_Is it real?_

Tony's face grew more serious. "FRIDAY said you had a nightmare."

Peter heard voices outside the door.

His family was there, talking. He wanted to listen in, but he was distracted.

"We wanted to make sure you were okay."

_Is it real?_

"You're doing better, Mr. Beck," Peter tried dryly, waiting to see the Maybe-Possibly-Tony's reaction.

Instead of a satisfaction, it was a sympathetic, concerned, comforting smile.

The man reached out to hug him. "Another one of those, huh? We'll take care of it, the two of us."

_Is it real?_

The team busted into the room, with a lot of yelling and confusion.

"Peter, we're here," Sam said unnecessarily. 

_Is it real?_

"Yeah, no shit." Tony opened his arms for a hug as Peter slowly calmed down at the comfortable familiarity of the group. Natasha joined in as Peter accepted the embrace, and the rest of the team inserted themselves. Their relationship went far past colleagues, and they all knew and cared for each other better than they knew or cared about themselves.

It was what made them such a great team. Such a great family.

Peter let himself be happy, and relaxed into the hug.

_It's real._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Could you tell when it was real?


	13. Stay With Me

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Okay so this is a shorter update to hold you guys while I work on a longer one! The longer one is called Corrupted and it's a brilliant request from one of you lovely readers <3
> 
> May has no idea Peter is Spider-Man, only that he is Tony's intern and the two are very close.
> 
> Basically, I've mixed Miles' and Peter's stories to create this. Some of you familiar with Miles' story can guess where this is going.
> 
> We get a really happy ending <3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (Italics are flashbacks, just so you know)

_"I'm going to school now! I'll see you later, Mr. Stark!" Peter called, grinning as he slung his backpack over one shoulder._

A few days ago, Peter had slept over at the compound. It wasn't an abnormal experience - he did it a lot now, and May was catching on to the fact that Tony cared about him as more than a mentor: rather, as a father.

_"Love you!" Tony had said, quickly and impulsively as he opened the door and Peter jumped out of the car in front of Midtown. The boy, momentarily stunned, hadn't said anything._

It had seemed like it would be a normal day.

_"I'll see you after school, kid," Tony told Peter, a bit awkwardly. The boy flung his arms around Tony, smiling. "See you, Mr. Stark."_

Ironic that, after everything, Peter still referred to him as Mr. Stark, not Tony.

_"You didn't have to come in your fanciest car," Peter told him, wrinkling his nose in amusement as Tony grinned with pride at him as he leaned against the car door. People were gaping at them as Tony reached out and ruffled the boy's hair, smirking. "Embarrassed?" He asked smugly. "Awkward," Peter had corrected, sending a wary glance over his shoulder as Ned waved a goodbye to him next to MJ, who just flipped them both off._

Tony only wished the day could be as nice as it had started. Sadly, the universe had something against Tony Stark, and couldn't let him be happy for long.

_Curious and shocked eyes had watched as Tony slid back into the car, Peter clambering in the other side._

Beep. Beep. Beep.

_"Word has it there's a new villain on the streets," Peter said, looking up from his web shooters with an adorable grin underneath still-ruffled hair._

If only Tony had taken it more seriously.

_"Yeah? What about 'em?" Tony had asked, moving toward Peter almost defensively, in spite of the safety of the lab. He wasn't letting Peter get hurt again._

Tony was wrong.

And he wasn't the one to pay for it.

_"They have something against me. I think they're a hitman or something. Well, not a man, per say."_

A woman, Peter had told him. Someone who was tracking Spider-Man and attempting to kill him. It wasn't exactly out of the ordinary though.

_"She calls herself Lady Prowler."_

It was an odd name, of course. But most criminals did have titles like that.

_"Got a lot of tech. She's really efficient, and I've only seen her a few times."_

Tony was assured enough to assume that Stark tech would easily outmatch this "Lady Prowler" tech, no matter what.

_"Hey, so uh I was on patrol, right? But Lady Prowler is on me. I haven't lost her yet. Can you come help quickly?" Tony was out of the room in a flash._

It should've been faster.

_There was an earsplitting crash as an explosion rocked the thankfully empty streets. But Tony was wrong, he realized too late. It wasn't quite empty. A small figure was blasted into the wall and lay crumpled on the ground now. A shadow shifted behind him._

Tony should've been quicker. Maybe if he'd been a few seconds faster, he would have seen the knife in the lady's hand...

_A glint of silver, and Tony was too late. Even at the top speed of his repulsors, he couldn't make it in time to prevent a small flash of metal and the frantic whimpering from the small boy. _

_Peter._

The horrible cleanliness of the hospital room was harsh in comparison to the vivid color of Peter's blood spilling across the pavement.

_Tony had dropped to his knees beside the body of his kid. Lady Prowler had receded into the shadows, still watching. He wanted to go kill her, but she wasn't the priority right now. Tony's priority was the kid bleeding out on the road._

Tony was clutching Peter's immobile hand.

Beep. Beep. Beep.

_Tony had ripped off Peter's mask to get a better view of the wound. Lady Prowler, in the shadows, had let out a strangled, horrified gasp._

_'Yeah, that's right,' Tony had wanted to tell her. 'Spider-Man's only a kid.'_

The wounds were healed better now. But not without a cost. 

Comatose, pale, disconnected from all reality, he was alive. 

For now.

_Lady Prowler had run to Tony's side, searching through her bags for anything she could use to stop the bleeding. She pulled out bandages and gauze. _

_"What are you doing?" Tony had gasped, confused and terrified. "Saving his life," Lady Prowler had replied, in a very familiar voice that Tony couldn't quite place._

It was probably thanks to her that Peter was still semi-alive.

Beep. Beep. Beep.

_Somehow, against all odds, Iron Man and Lady Prowler ended up bandaging a battered and bleeding-out Spider-Man. Tony had picked Peter up and started to fly away when Lady Prowler cried out "Please, tell me when he's okay!"_

Only once May never showed up at the hospital did Tony realize why Lady Prowler's voice seemed so familiar.

It had been a mistake. May was trying to get money for her and Peter, not knowing that Peter was Spider-Man. She only wanted the best for them. It wasn't quite an excuse, though.

Beep. Beep. Beep.

_Peter, feverish and gripping Tony's wrist like a vise, whispered out an answer to Tony's earlier, unanswered words. "I love you, Dad. I'm sorry."_

Beep. Beep. Beep.

"Tony... it's been a month. We don't know if he'll recover," Helen said ruefully one day as Tony walked in. 

"I'm not giving up on him."

_The dreadful silence that had followed as Tony desperately tried to keep Peter alive._

"Hey, kid. It's... been a while. People miss Spider-Man. Please, come back?" Tony swallowed past the lump in his throat. 

_"Don't be sorry. Stay with me."_

"Hey, Peter. I can't... please. It's been six months. I can't do this without you. Your friends miss you, Queens misses you, and nothing's been the same without you."

Beep. Beep. Beep.

_No response from Peter. Only a quiet notification from FRIDAY that Peter's pulse was rapidly dropping._

"Tony... it's been half a year," Cho told him regretfully. "He wouldn't want this."

That much was true. Peter would hate thinking that he was stuck being 'a burden' - not that he could ever be one.

Pepper put a gentle hand on his back, and Tony turned to hide his face. Natasha let out a small sob and buried her face in Clint's shoulder. Steve looked at the ground, a tear slowly tracing down his face. Bucky, T'Challa, and Shuri had made an appearance from Wakanda, and Shuri had been feeling incredibly guilty for not being able to help Peter.

"It's a simple injection. It's your choice, of course, but..." Helen studied the floor. Clearly she didn't want to be the bearer of bad news. 

"We have to," Pepper told Tony softly. The man nodded reluctantly. 

"I want to be the one to do it," Tony insisted. Helen hesitated, but at an encouraging nod from Bruce, she handed Tony a syringe. 

Tony gently pushed loose strands of hair out of Peter's face.

Beep. Beep. Beep.

"I love you," He whispered, kissing the boy's forehead. Peter should be awake, sixteen and excited at whatever new ideas that he, Ned, and MJ had.

No response.

Tony, with a steady hand that he was astonished wasn't shaking, inserted the syringe into Peter's vein.

Beep. Beep. Beep.

"I can't-" Tony gasped, pulling it back out precisely without pushing the fluid in. 

Helen and Pepper traded sympathetic looks. 

"I can't let him die. _Please._" 

A doctor gave Helen a nod. Helen took the syringe from Tony and put it into Peter's arm, then pushed the plunger down.

Tony was screaming.

"Please, kid, no, stay with me, I know you can do it, you're stronger than this!"

Beep. Beep.

Beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee-

"Peter, please. I can't do this without you."

-eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee-

"You're the best person I know. You can make it through this."

-eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee-

Tony collapsed on the floor next to Peter's bed.

-eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee-

Natasha's eyes were blurred with tears. "If anyone can do it, you can," She whispered.

-eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee-

MJ was standing, hands clasped so tight her knuckles were turning white. 

"Please."

-eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee-

Tony clasped Peter's hand, hopes fading.

"Stay with me."

-eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep. Beep. Beep.

Helen's eyes widened with shock. 

"His powers," Steve breathed in relief, smiling.

Shuri's eyes lit up suddenly. "If he can withstand that..." A small smile started to grow on her face.

"You just had an idea," Tony accused, dizzy with relief and excitement.

"It's just a theory. But if he can take what would normally kill 10 people - that was the modified serum, too! - then he might be able to live through this. Okay, bear with me. It was an idea I had, stimulating parts of the brain that were unresponsive through electrical impulses. The issue was, the electricity required would be fatal to anyone, because it's just as lethal as that injection. They've been scaled, and they're the same. If Peter lived through that, we might be able to wake him up," Shuri rambled. 

MJ brightened. "You're a genius!" She breathed, catching on. "If we can stimulate the cerebrum, and reduce the exertion of the thalamus using shock levels that high, it should be able to snap him out of it..."

****"Why didn't you think of this before?" A doctor challenged. 

Shuri glared at him. "Because before, there was a chance of him waking up on his own. And we had previously assumed that this would kill him."

"And you're sure it won't kill him this time?" Tony inquired.

Shuri hesitated. "It's... unlikely. Rhodey, can you run the equations for me as I start getting it set up?"

Rhodey grinned at her. "I knew MIT would come in handy."

They were all riding on adrenaline that comes before you process something that just happened.

"Shit," Tony breathed. "My kid almost just died. I almost just killed him."

MJ shot Tony a glare when she heard. "It was with his best interests in mind. If you blame yourself, I swear I will punch you another goddamn year into the future," She threatened.

Natasha looked up from converting her Widow's Bites to be useful for the procedure.

"Steve doesn't like that kind of talk," The woman pointed out, making a joke for the first time in a year.

"Nat, I'm literally going to kill you."

Natasha sipped her tea innocently. "You could try," She told Steve sweetly.

_"He's comatose. I don't... I don't know when he'll be back. Or... if," Helen told Tony uncertainly, rocking on her heels as she cast a nervous look back into the room._

_"He'll be back. As long as I'm here, he's always going to come back."_

_\--------a few days later_ _\--------_

"Mr. Stark?" 

Tony never thought he'd be so happy to hear those two words. 

He fell back into his chair, a hand clapped over his mouth and tears rolling down his cheeks. 

"What happened?" Peter asked blearily, not quite realizing where they were. 

"You died. But then you didn't. And- you were asleep for a - a long time," Tony managed, struggling to find the words.

Peter's eyes narrowed. "Just how long was it?" He inquired, looking around. 

"Six months," Tony replied, physically restraining himself from hugging Peter to death.

"Six?" Peter yelled, then clapped a hand to his mouth and muttered a "sorry."

"Never. Never say that again. I never want to hear you apologize for anything," Tony said sternly.

"Oh! Ah, sor- that is, I won't?" Peter told/asked him. Tony smiled proudly through tears. 

"Where is everyo-" Realization dawned in Peter's eyes. "May," He whispered hoarsely.

"She ran," Tony told him reluctantly. "I got a note... she explained everything. How she was short on money for you two and decided to take a job in order to make money. Turned out to be a shit deal. May disappeared. She's a good person, but was misled into thinking you were a bad person. Turns out you and her have a similar guilt complex. She... left a phone number. For you to call when you woke up."

Peter nodded hesitantly. "I'll call... later I guess."

Tony buried Peter in a not-too-tight hug, ignoring tears tracing down his face. 

"Peter?" Tony whispered. "Thank you for staying. I love you, kid."

The answer was faint but definitely there. 

"I love you too, Dad. I'm not leaving."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A helpful guide to the science stuff in the middle of the chapter: they go zap zap and the brain is like o wow and then it wakes up.


	14. Phone Calls

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What's a Peter Parker one shot book without one of these?
> 
> Flash is kinda a real asshole in this. Sorry guys I normally hate stereotyping him into the idiotic category, but he kinda starts out with very few braincells until he realizes his miscalculations.
> 
> Peter is not an official Stark but Tony basically considers him one, unbeknownst to Peter.
> 
> Infinity War happened but I fixed Endgame
> 
> This one may be kinda short, I was running low on time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's literally just fluff. That's it.

Peter groaned as he slid down in his chair in Physics. "Why am I here again?" He muttered to Ned.

Their teacher - Mr. Allen was an asshole, and that was the nicest way Peter could put it.

There was this one incredibly stupid rule in the teacher's classroom: if you hear a phone ring, then it must be answered on speaker.

Now, Peter was fairly sure that was a violation of privacy rights, if not illegal, but apparently in a classroom, new laws are made.

He had never thought that he would be the one subjected to the rule.

Of course, shortly after meeting Tony, Peter should have realized that not everything was going to be that straightforward.

It was right in the middle of a lecture when Peter's phone started buzzing. Ned looked over at the slight noise that Mr. Allen, at the front of the classroom, couldn't hear.

"Karen, cancel the call," Peter muttered underneath his breath. "I cannot do that. Mr. Stark is pushing the call through using the Ringtone Protocol - he doesn't know if you have it on you."

Peter had a split second to regret every single one of his life choices before Back in Black blasted from his phone, and the class fell silent. Every single person had turned to stare, eyes wide, at the person least likely to interrupt a class.

Mr. Allen fixed him with a glare. "Mr. Parker!" He exclaimed, voice a mixture of smugness, anger, and surprise. "You know what the rule is."

"Sir, it's a call from my boss, it's really nothing," Peter tried to protest, only to be cut off. "Answer. The. Phone." 

"But-" To cut off Peter again, Tony had decided to join the conversation. "Hey kid, we're in a really bad position right now and we need you to come help out. We have a code re-" "Mr. Stark!" Peter yelped desperately. 

"Excuse me, who are you calling Mr. Stark? I thought we were past that, kid!" Tony interrupted. "_Mr. Stark. _I'm in the middle of class, and you're on speaker, so please watch what you say, it wasn't my choice," Peter rambled quickly.

"Who is this, Peter?" Mr. Allen asked, eyes narrowed. "Um- like I said, it's just my boss," He stammered out. Flash got out of his chair and grabbed the phone right out of Peter's hand. "It's labelled Mr. Stark," The boy scoffed. "Did you seriously hire someone to pretend to be Tony Stark?" Flash asked, snickering.

Peter seized his phone out of the other boy's hand, blushing furiously. "And the contact's the same? You said you'd changed that!" Tony exclaimed, momentarily diverted. "This isn't even believable," Flash called brashly. "Who did you pay to pretend to care about you?" He taunted.

Mr. Allen was watching this develop. 

Like Peter had said, he was an asshole.

"Excuse me?" Tony demanded, protective rage entering his voice. "FRIDAY, switch to hologram mode," He instructed. A few seconds later, his face was projected out of the lenses of Peter's phone. 

"I will have you know, that Peter-" "MR. STARK!" Peter yelled, cutting him off. 

"Wow, you're really going all out with this, aren't you?" Flash smirked. 

"Peter. Like I said earlier, I need your help. What color watch are you wearing?" Tony asked seriously, voice heavy with implication.

"I am wearing a gold watch," Peter replied. That was their code. He had the Iron Spider on him at the moment. 

"Great. I'm going to swing by -" Tony broke off to laugh. "That was unintentional."

"Yeah. Like I said, careful with what you say," Peter mumbled. "I am going to _fly_ by. Be outside."

Peter cast a quick glance around the room, taking in confused faces, leering ones, and the two encouraging ones - Ned and MJ.

He sighed. "Got it. I'm on the third floor, fifth window from the right," Peter told Tony. "Alright. I'll be there in a minute. Lov-"

Then Peter hung up.

He met the incredibly confused faces of his classmates. "Uh... it's a Stark Internship emergency," The boy explained quickly.

Flash's face was calculating, smarter that a lot of people gave him credit for. Weighing the reactions he had and the likelihood that it was really Tony Stark.

Peter could tell Flash had arrived at the answer by the way the boy's face paled rapidly and his eyes widened.

"I, uh, gotta go," Peter said, brushing himself off.

A few seconds later, repulsors sounded and Tony was hovering outside the window. He knocked on it, smirking, as the helmet receded into the suit.

"Hi, I'm here to pick up Peter S- Parker. Peter Parker."

Mr. Allen had slowly opened the window. "Sir, you can't just take him out of school without permission," He said hesitantly. 

Tony gave a bored sigh and stepped in through the window. He walked over to Peter's desk at the side of the classroom and grabbed the pencil from his hand. "Excuse me, Mr. Stark-" Peter said, mock offended. 

Tony just stuck his tongue out at him as he grabbed a piece of paper from Peter's notebook.

In an exaggerated flourish, he scrawled a note quickly. 

_I, Tony Stark, am checking Peter ␥ Parker from school today, 9/29/19._

There were weird scribble marks, covering something up, in between Peter's first and last name. 

He decided not to worry about it as Tony tossed it carelessly at the teacher. "I'm his emergency contact and backup guardian. That works, right?" 

The entire class was gaping at Peter, who was blushing furiously as Tony grinned, ruffling the boy's hair.

"Let's go, kid."

And with that, Peter and Tony went off to fight some aliens.

\--------------

A few months after the incident, he had made Tony agree not to call him in the time period of Mr. Allen's class, rather to text him instead.

The rest of the Avengers didn't get the memo.

A full seven minutes into class, the song We Own It started blaring.

_Clint, why?_

Peter reluctantly pulled out his phone at Mr. Allen's sharp glare. 

"Hey, Peter!" Clint said cheerfully. "I know this is probably a bad time, but you know the prank war? Tasha wants me to invite you to our team."

Peter gasped. He had been waiting for the prank war to officially start. 

"Yes! Oh my god I've been waiting so long! I didn't want to be on a team against Auntie Tasha anyways, so that's perfect!" He replied, classroom momentarily forgotten.

"What the fuck," Jason breathed, confused.

"Oh! Right, uh, you called in the middle of this one class - and uh, you're on speaker."

Clint laughed. "With the teacher Tony called a dick?"

Peter paled. "That's not- Mr. Allen isn't- thanks for calling, Mr. Barton, bye!"

"Excuse me, I thought you were my nephew! This is betrayal! Your dad will be so-"

Peter hung up again.

Meeting the confused faces of the rest of the class for the second time. "I don't have a dad. I don't know what he was talking about."

\----------

Peter thought he was done with getting the stupid phone calls from his teammates/kind of family that he would never admit to having.

So when Sam's ringtone, Hall of Fame, filled the silent classroom only four days after Clint's call, Peter was ready to throw the stupid phone across the room.

"Hello, Peter!" Sam said smugly as soon as the phone was answered. 

"Hey, Mr. Wilson," Peter muttered, resisting the urge to roll his eyes. He was pretty sure he knew what this was about. The other day, he had pranked the hell out of the man. This was probably revenge.

"Oh wow! How rude! Are you trying to acquaintance-zone me? Is that a thing? I thought it was Uncle Sam, Pete! Here I thought we had something special."

At some point, Peter's class had become used to this. Both listening avidly and yet not as shocked as the first time.

"You're on speaker," Peter said bluntly. "Oh, trust me, I know!" Sam exclaimed, smugness evident in his tone.

Rude.

"Anyways, hi Peter's class! Peter's dad told me there's this class period - oh, he says this is revenge for the Red Bull incident, whatever that means - that everyone can hear when you call?"

Peter made a face. "My dad's dead."

Sam choked on the other line.

Ned was barely avoiding laughter, and MJ was trying to hide her giggles as the rest of the class looked on in horror at the joke. 

"We're used to the orphan jokes," Ned pointed out.

"You know who I'm talking about," Sam retorted. Peter raised an eyebrow. "My other father figure?"

"That's it!" Sam said smugly.

"My uncle's dead too."

A noise came over the phone that sounded suspiciously like Sam slamming his head into a table.

"Your other dad. Tony." 

"He's not my father," Peter replied, trying to hide a small grin. "Yes he is. You and I both know it. Anyways, that's beside the point."

The entire class looked so done™.

"What I wanted to talk about was that day when you fell out of the-"

Beeping interrupted Sam's words.

Peter dropped the phone back into his backpack. "I'm not continuing that."

\------------

Peter had already been overly self-conscious and worried about what people thought of him.

After his experiences on Titan and being dusted for a few months, it was only worse.

Carol had shown up and helped the Avengers beat the shit out of Thanos before he could destroy the stones. Then she had snapped, and BAM. All better.

It wasn't particularly surprising when he had nightmares after it.

The fact that he'd barely contributed anything to the battle against Thanos was only part of the issue.

The larger part of the issue was the huge reality check he had been dealt in the battle with the Guardians.

No matter how many people accepted him, there were always going to be people who hated him.

Nightmares about that subject matter were not fun for him.

_"I swear to god, I'm gonna french fry this little freak."_

_Freak._

_The word bounced around in his head._

_Not 'kid', like Tony would always say. Not 'student', like the teachers. Definitely not 'hero', like the people of New York would sometimes say._

_Freak. _

_Something abnormal. Weird. Different._

_In a bad way._

Peter had thankfully been woken up by a concerned voice. Natasha was crouching beside him, worriedly asking if he was okay.

In a fit of upset, he had told her everything, immediately regretting it.

Natasha had done everything he could possibly have asked for.

But the next day in class - only two days after Sam's call, he'd gotten a phone call from her.

One Woman Army echoed through the room.

Peter would've answered it anyways - it was fucking Natasha Romanoff - but he had to at any rate, so it didn't matter.

"Hey, маленький паук!" She said cheerfully into the phone. Gunshots were echoing around her, so Peter was able to assume she was on a mission.

"Hey Auntie Tasha!" 

Peter would never disrespect her by calling her anything other than Auntie Tasha.

"So, I'm in a small break on a mission, and I wanted to tell you something regarding last night," Natasha explained.

A pained grunt - not Natasha's - came from the other line.

"Oh! Uh, you're on speaker. Class rules. Can we talk about it during lunch?"

There was a confused silence. "What?" Natasha asked. "I'm in class...?"

Natasha groaned. "Fucking Sam. He said it was your lunch period right now. I will literally murder him." Peter grinned. "You do that."

At this point, the other students had returned to their work. They had given up on being surprised anymore.

"I'll call you later!" Natasha said pleasantly.

"See you later Auntie Tasha!" "Love ya!" 

\-------------

The National Anthem was playing.

Three days later.

Because Steve had decided to be a dick.

"Peter! You'll never guess what I put in your room today. You have a new lifetime supply of Captain America clothes!"

"I'm sorry, _what? _" 

"You and Nat put me. In the Museum of Natural History. While I was sleeping."

Peter burst out laughing. "Yeah, that was a good prank, wasn't it?"

The entire class started laughing, not even surprised anymore.

"You know I can literally just borrow anyone else's?" Peter inquired.

Steve was silent until he decided on the perfect answer.

"Don't kid yourself, you're too short."

Then Steve hung up, leaving Peter gaping and the classroom screaming with laughter and mockery.

\-------------

Only a day later, he got a call from a very disgruntled Bucky Barnes, the ringtone of Dangerous again disrupting the class.

At this point, Mr. Allen was just done. He simply motioned for Peter to answer the phone, not even looking up from his book.

A breathless voice came over the line. "You forgot your lunch," Bucky deadpanned. "I brought - no, shut up, Steve! - I am bringing it to you now, what's your room number?"

Peter stared at the phone, regretting his life choices for probably the millionth time.

"3304," Peter said hesitantly. "Uh... is that like hallway 3000? Do you have a - Nat! I'm asking a perfectly legitimate question! - do you have - Nat, I swear - do you have a 3000th hallway?" Bucky's words were broken up with side comments to other people. There were stifled groans heard over the phone.

"Barnes, it clearly means the third floor, are you stupid?" Sam put in, clearly exasperated.

"I'm sorry for my friends, they've decided to join me and have _also decided to be annoying as hell- _wait what? Oh shit, you're on speaker? Nat, why are you just saying this - Sam, you son of a -"

Peter looked despairingly at his phone as voices came from the hallway matching those on it.

There was a click, and every head swiveled toward the doorway as a very awkward Steve Rogers opened it with a reluctant grin. "Hey..." He started.

Voices echoed from behind him.

"Bucky! Stop shoving!" "Wilson, you sound like a toddler!" "Will you both shut up!?"

Natasha pushed Steve out of the way, grabbing a small box from his hands in a quick movement.

"Steve had leftover pizza he made from last night. We noticed you left your food - a sandwich, pathetic, by the way with what you need, and packed you a new one," The woman explained.

Ned turned astonished eyes to Peter, who blushed. 

"Uh, thanks Auntie Tasha. I didn't know there was any left," He said, grinning.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! How come she gets to be Auntie Tasha but whenever I'm in public with you, it's Mr. Wilson?" Sam demanded, shoving his way into the doorway, followed by a harassed-looking Bucky.

"Oh, you guys have _nothing _ on me! He still calls me Mr. Stark to my face even when we're alone!" Tony scoffed, walking in with his full glory.

Natasha only grinned. "Guess he likes me better."

Tony made a face at her.

Peter grinned at the man unapologetically. "Aren't you the one that calls me annoying nicknames in public?" He countered. "But I've known you the longest, _Underoos._"

"Why are you all here?" Peter asked, changing the subject quickly. 

"We wanted to visit," Wanda said, pushing her way to the front of the group. 

"Wanda!" Peter exclaimed happily. She had been on a mission for a few days, and he was waiting for her return anxiously. They had a prank planned on Sam.

Natasha had arrived at Peter's desk and deposited the sandwich, giving the boy a grin and a hug.

"They really just wanted to show off, and embarrass you," She informed him. Peter nodded ruefully. "I'm honestly not surprised."

When Natasha and Peter returned to the conversation, they had gotten into a debate about Peter's ringtones for them.

"But Hall of Fame is by far the best - because everyone knows you," "Yeah, Wilson, but Back in Black is a classic! I can't believe you'd think-" "But We Own It is the definition of our team!"

"Boys!" Natasha interrupted. "Mine is clearly the best. Everyone knows. One Woman Army. 'I'm on the battlefield'? 'Knocking soldiers down like house of cards'? Stop arguing and accept your inevitable fate."

Cue complaints from the team.

"I have to go before I lose any more brain cells," Natasha announced.

She grabbed Steve and Clint by the arms and dragged them out, the rest of them following.

\-----------

Long story short, Peter's class wasn't even surprised when he got phone calls anymore.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Have a great night/day/eternal void/afternoon/evening!


	15. Corrupted

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Requested by fan_girl2403 On wattpad!

As it turned out, Peter was actually having a rather good day. Well, technically it was night now, about midnight.

He and the rest of the Avengers had just taken down an enormous, highly powerful supervillain that was threatening New York and the surrounding area.

But when he saw the small, glowing object lying among the ruins, Peter had every intention of bringing it to Tony for it to be analyzed.

"Mr. Stark would want this, right?" He muttered aloud, staring at it.

However, as soon as he touched it, it started to glow. Peter stumbled backwards, but it felt as though he were glued to the spot. When he was finally able to rip his hand away, his heart was racing and the boy shook his hand out frantically.

"I should probably tell Mr. Stark," He mumbled, clutching his hand.

I guess I'll tell Tony about it once we're back at the compound, Peter decided, not wanting to attempt to pick it up again.

Quickly, Peter turned and webbed his way across the city over the loud noises of traffic and people talking.

Once he made it to the compound, Peter stumbled into a quick roll and shakily started walking toward the entrance.

He didn't make it very far before blackness encroached upon his vision that wasn't there before and the ground was rushing toward him.

Tony's POV

"Boss, Peter has entered the premises. He appears to have just passed out," FRIDAY told Tony, startling him out of his researching.

"I- what? Where?" Tony demanded, jumping up and ready to move. "Right outside of the back entrance, sir," She replied.

The minute it took for him to get to Peter's side was a dazed blur of color and lights. Crouching, Tony lifted Peter easily into his arms - the kid was way lighter than any human being should be, thanks to his spider genes.

Before Tony even got to the Med Bay, Peter was stirring. He opened his eyes and looked up at Tony, confused.

"What's going on?" Peter asked flatly. Tony exhaled in relief. "You passed out," The man told him, not ready to put the boy down.

Peter frowned. "Okay."

Tony looked at him hesitantly. Normally he'd be talking a mile a minute at this point about something or other. Instead, Peter was silent, watching Tony expectantly.

There was a beat of silence.

"Are you going to put me down?" Peter asked, amused and almost exasperated.

"Are you hurt?" Tony retorted, scanning through boy up and down before putting him down on his feet. "Nope," Peter said easily.

"I- okay?" Tony began hesitantly.

Peter just nodded and left the area without another word.

"What the hell?"

\-------------

"Hey, kid," Tony said, walking into Peter's room. The boy looked up silently, as was becoming usual for him. Tony had been trying to figure out if something had happened to him at the battle, to no use. The compound had been incredibly quiet since.

"I hate to say this... but you have to stay here. The guy we fought said that he had people everywhere, watching. Even at Midtown High. He knew you were a high school student. That person is still there, as far as we know."

Tony braced himself for a flood of protest, but he was caught off guard when Peter simply said "okay".

"Is something wrong?" Tony asked, studying the boy. Peter just tilted his head slightly. "No. Why would there be?"

\-------------

A few days later, Tony walked into the training room to see Peter angrily attacking a punching bag.

They were Avengers-grade, and nobody had managed to destroy one yet, not even Thor. But the bag was jumping and fraying as Peter punched it, and in a final burst of hits, the bag split down the middle.

Peter shook his hands out, glaring at the decimated punching bag.

"Peter? Wanna come down to the lab with me?" Tony asked hesitantly, glancing at the equipment. Peter stared at Tony in almost a confused state before saying "No thanks."

What was going on?

\--------------

Clint had discovered the murdered punching bag and checked the tapes to see who did it. Once seeing it, he had proposed a Peter vs. all training battle.

So, now they were all awkwardly standing in the middle of the gym staring at each other.

The rule was, if you were on the ground for more than five seconds, you were out.

Clint counted down and then yelled an excited "Go!"

Thor was the first to move, running at Peter who swiftly ducked under the god's arm and twisted it sideways, using it as leverage to leap onto the man's shoulders and use his legs to flip Thor to the ground.

Tony whistled softly, waiting for an opening as Clint loaded his bow with stun arrows. Wanda started to use her magic to catch Peter off balance, but he noticed and leaped toward her, kicking the girl backward.

Pietro started to attack, only to be webbed swiftly to the wall in the middle of a movement.

"You're not supposed to have your web shooters!" Steve called. "I don't!" Peter retorted.

Wanda began to attack again, but Peter shifted quickly. Blades erupted out of the boy's wrists - stingers, Tony realized. Like those of a spider's. Peter nicked Wanda's forearm with them lightly and she fell backwards with a look of shock.

"Shit!" Peter breathed in a moment of surprise. "Okay," He continued warily, before returning to the fight, retracting the stingers.

Steve had ducked in during Peter's pause of distraction and grabbed the boy's wrist, then punching him away. Or so he attempted. Peter just stood there, staring at him, then kicked Steve to the ground, and dodging one of Bucky's fists. Clint shot an arrow at Peter, but the boy simply caught it and hurled it back at the man with pinpoint accuracy. Natasha jumped in quickly and dodged a few of Peter's blows. She slipped underneath him and leaped onto his shoulders, pulling him backwards.

Peter flipped quickly and seized one of the woman's legs, using the momentum of the backflip to slide Natasha off and slam her into the ground. She rolled sideways and sprang to her feet, but not before Peter jumped away from her sweeping kick. The boy grabbed her leg as she tried to kick him and judo-flipped her to the ground, shooting a web to keep her there for at least the next five seconds.

Bucky attacked at the same time as Clint and Tony. Peter flipped over Bucky's head and, when the man punched at him, slid out of the way. Bucky's fist ended up hitting Clint, who sprawled to the ground. Peter took advantage of Bucky's distraction to kick his legs out from under him and web him to the ground.

Sam and Rhodey double-attacked, only for Peter to flip Sam into Rhodey and knock them both into the ground.

Vision and Tony were the last ones standing soon. They traded wary glances and then rushed Peter together. The boy smirked and fended off blow after blow from Tony, all while avoiding blasts from Vision.

The fight ended when Peter literally threw Tony at Vision, knocking them both to the ground.

Peter exhaled a breath, not even looking tired as he took his mask off, grabbing the web dissolver and tossed it to Natasha, who had one hand free.

Clint brushed himself off, grinning. "That was crazy!" He exclaimed. Steve had narrowed his eyes. "How did you do that?" He asked. "You've never been able to do that before."

Peter looked defensive. "I just trained!" He said fiercely. Bucky tilted his head. "I don't see how stingers come from training. How did you really do it?"

Peter backed away. "Do you guys not trust me or something?" He inquired, glaring.

"Something clearly happened that you're not telling us," Pietro said, scrutinizing the boy with clear suspicion.

"What's your deal?" Peter snapped, recoiling. "I didn't do anything wrong! What are you guys, jealous?"

He spun on one foot and made for the door, stepping neatly around Tony as he tried to stop the boy.

The door slammed shut with a bang that echoed through the silent room.

\------------

It had been two weeks, and Peter didn't come back. They had been looking for him, but the boy was nowhere to be found.

Tony was sitting in the lab, exhausted from a long night of searching for Peter on the Internet and all New York cameras when the mission alert came in. There was a HYDRA base located in North Carolina, over at the Biltmore.

Who would've known?

Apparently the famous mansion had been run by HYDRA for decades as they used it to locate and gather information on targets and stored tech underground.

That was a new one.

So, they were headed out there on a Quinjet.

They got there right after the place was closed and all the visitors had left, then burst through the doors into the entry room.

Searching through the basement, Natasha found a secret door that led to an empty wall.

The rest of them made their way there, and Tony took a look at the wall.

"Please be a secret room, please be a secret room..." Tony muttered, tapping on the wall. A brick gave way and a door slid open. "Yay!"

They stepped through and realized they were outside again, in a huge garden that had to be at least 20 acres.

That's a lot, by the way.

Then a few hundred people from HYDRA swarmed the Avengers.

"Okay, not so 'yay' anymore," He muttered, punching a guy in the face.

There was a scream from Wanda, and Tony flew to her side. She had been knocked out in the time it took for him to get there. Tony seized the agent standing over her. Wanda was practically infallible.

"How did you do it?" He asked fiercely, lifting the agent into the air. The agent gasped for air. "Wouldn't you like to know?" A distinctly feminine voice asked.

"Tell me or I'll end you in the most painful way possible." The woman hesitated. Tony powered up a repulsor and aimed it at her. "We have... a new informant who told us your weaknesses. She isn't good at close range combat!" She said hastily.

"Who? How long?" Tony demanded. The woman shook her head. "I don't - I don't know, only a few people do. Maybe two weeks?"

Tony tossed her aside roughly.

An informant. Someone had infiltrated the Avengers.

Tony grabbed Wanda and draped her over his shoulders, flying her to the jet as the rest of the Avengers finished up.

Laying the girl down on the bed of the in-ship Med Bay, Tony turned to face the team as they filtered in.

"There's a spy," Tony told them quickly as they sat down. Natasha turned to him with a horrified look. "You're kidding, right?" She asked. Tony shook his head. Steve paled. "How long?" The super soldier inquired."An agent said they were probably there for two weeks."

Bucky looked over, arms braced on a table. "Any names?" Tony shook his head.

"You know who's been missing for two weeks?" Pietro asked bitterly. Tony jerked his head to stare at the boy. "Are you serious?" He demanded, livid. "Peter would never do something right that."

Pietro raised his hands in surrender. "I'm not saying he'd betray us, per say. But he was acting really odd..." Tony glared at him. "Peter. Would. Not. Do. That."

Steve stepped forward, hands out placatingly. "It is possible that Peter... was taken against his will in some manner," He said quickly.

Tony looked at him doubtfully. "They couldn't do anything to him that would make him tell," He pointed out. Bucky scowled. "There are worse things than death. And HYDRA can do any of them," He said bitterly.

"He wouldn't." Tony was convinced of this. Natasha was silent, but he could almost hear her thinking: piecing together information and things that have happened.

Sam was doing the same thing.

It was evident when he came to a conclusion.

"Sam..." Tony exclaimed, betrayed as he read his face.

The man stared at the ground, looking thoroughly ashamed.

"I don't think he would. But if there's - you never know if other people can do what Wanda can, what Loki had done before he changed..." Sam hesitated.

Tony paused. Did it make sense? Maybe.

"We are jumping to conclusions here, you know. It's more than likely a coincidence," Nat said quickly. Tony could tell she was just as desperate for Peter's safety as he was.

\------------

There was a HYDRA attack.

Wanda hadn't been able to make it: she was very injured in the Biltmore run, and was still suffering from severe concussions and multiple broken bones.

They were in a place startlingly similar to Sokovia, abandoned except for enemy. Of course, this time it was agents instead of murderous robots. And they were in New York.

There had to be thousands of agents, but they were doing well until something happened.

Steve went down, and nobody was sure how. The super soldier was half-coherent over the comms. "Someone dropped out- the sky. Hit me. Away - he went up."

"I'm on it," Tony said, blasting into the sky.

A lone figure was perched on a roof, and Tony flew over that way silently. He landed on the building, staring at who was clearly the person to take down Steve. They were short, and wearing a mask, as well as a jacket with a hood, effectively obscuring their face. It was clear they were special though - red stripes were painted down the sleeves of the jacket, and their mask was decorated differently.

The figure looked over to see Tony. Something in their eyes seemed very conflicted. It was like the agent was fighting themselves on the inside.

Tony lifted his arm to fire a repulsor, and the agent hesitated.

The agent was a male - he had a very distinctive build, but something was wrong. He was in a fighting stance, but he wasn't moving, like he was having an internal debate.

Tony shook off his confusion, fired up his repulsor, and blasted the agent off the building as the agent was hesitating.

A surprised yell drifted up to Tony as the agent fell.

A somehow familiar yell, that Tony couldn't quite place.

At any rate, the building was a hundred stories high. The agent couldn't possibly survive.

Tony returned to the fight.

Natasha nodded at him as he blasted an agent away from her. "Nice of you to show up!" She yelled over the sound of the fray. "What were you doing up there, gazing into the agent's eyes?"

Tony rolled his eyes. "You're hilarious, Romanoff."

There was a shift in the atmosphere as Bucky's yell echoed through the battlefield, quickly cut off.

"Shall we figure out what that was?" Natasha proposed, kicking an operative into a tree.

Tony smirked. "They always need our help, don't they."

Natasha lifted her arm in a move that she and Tony had practiced multiple times. Tony blasted over to her and grabbed her wrist. She twisted and slung herself onto his back, lacing her arms around his shoulders and securing her legs around his waist in an easy manner.

Tony grinned and they blasted off toward Bucky's last coordinates.

When they touched down, nothing was there. "Scan for heat signatures," Tony instructed, looking warily around the trees.

"Scanning," FRIDAY replied. Tony looked over at Natasha. Suddenly, the woman's eyes widened. "Tony-" She exclaimed, half a second too late. A weight collided with Tony's back, and electricity erupted across the Iron Man suit's skin.

But it didn't work like Thor's lightning. There was something odd about this type of electricity - disabling his suit instead of powering it.

A shadow rose up behind Natasha. Tony started to say another warning, but his mouth wasn't working and the world faded away.

\--------------

When he woke up, he was bound to a chair next to the rest of the Avengers. "What happened to you guys?" Tony asked warily. "Some guy threw a device at me," Vision grumbled. "It disabled my systems. They're still not working. How did you guys get here?"

Everyone else had a similar story.

A HYDRA agent - and not the one from the building - was crossing his arms in front of them. "Hello, Avengers. I suppose you're wondering how I managed to get you here."

Pietro's eyes darkened. "The spy," He stated.

A hint of surprise registered in the agent's eyes.

"You're correct. The spy was able to tell us your weaknesses, and we could exploit them from there. I am Daniel Whitehall, but you can call me the Kraken."

Natasha traded a glance with Bucky.

"So then, I presume you already know I brought you here to kill you," Kraken continued matter-of-factly.

"I did assume so," Tony deadpanned.

"While we would typically let the lovely Natalia free," The man strolled over to Natasha and fingered a gun in his left pocket. "Or the Asset," He added. "All of you will die, as you are now no use to us."

"Who would like to die first?" Kraken inquired, pulling out the gun. "I suppose that I will choose."

The man shifted his gun between all of the Avengers before settling on Tony.

"The one and only Tony Stark. People think of him as a god. Shall we see proof that he's mortal after all?"

Kraken released the safety on the gun, aimed directly for Tony's head, and smirked.

CRACK.

A shadow had moved. Incredibly fast. Not as fast as Pietro, but still.

They had swung their arm with a clear amount of force behind it, and the Kraken had shot sideways.

Then the shadow moved again, and everything came into focus.

The agent Tony had kicked off of the building was standing over the unconscious body of the Kraken, trembling.

He knelt down to grab the gun and leveled it at Natasha, swiftly firing.

The woman didn't even flinch. The agent's aim was true - the ropes binding her to the chair were severed neatly down the middle.

The agent did the same thing to Tony's ropes, before abruptly dropping the gun.

Tony hesitated, watching as the agent swayed backwards, shaking. Natasha started to move toward the man, reaching out, but he recoiled.

Natasha took a few steps back when the agent's head jerked.

His eyes, previously filled with a bit of fear but a lot of triumph, had darkened and filled with rage.

The agent let out a hiss of annoyance and turned to run away.

He was gone before Tony realized what had happened.

"What the hell just happened?" Rhodey breathed, staring at the dropped gun.

"I have no idea," Tony replied, starting to untie the rest of the Avengers.

Peter's POV

It had been a while since he passed out.

He wasn't consciously aware of the flow of time until now, when he had woken up.

Because now it was noon, and previously it was midnight.

The blackness had receded, for a few seconds, and suddenly he was crouching in some bushes, staring at a man who was ranting. Tilting his head a bit, he could see people tied up.

His team? What was going on?

All he knew was that the man had just pointed a gun at Tony's head.

Peter moved faster than he had ever done before and in about two seconds he had cleared about an acre of land to hit the man across the head. A resounding crack echoed across the forest.

Peter was trembling as he stared at the collapsed man. What had he done?

He opened his mouth to speak, only to realize he was wearing some type of mask.

He had done it. He'd saved Tony, right?

Crouching, he picked up the man's gun and, in two quick movements, shot the ropes off of Natasha and Tony.

He was about to free Clint, but the blackness was starting to return, and he stumbled.

Peter looked up at Tony, scared. In about half a second, he processed this:

He had passed out at least twelve hours earlier.

He was in the middle of a forest.

And he was in completely different clothes from before.

Then he swayed and passed out on his feet.

Tony's POV

"Who was that guy?" Sam asked shakily. "I have no idea," Tony managed, staring at the space that the agent had disappeared into. "Could it be one of SHIELD's spies?" Pietro inquired. Tony shook his head. "I... saw him earlier. He was the one that attacked Steve. A spy wouldn't have done that."

Natasha frowned. "That makes no sense. Why would he have switched sides?"

"I have no idea. Especially because I blasted him off of a building. He shouldn't have survived. That building was - what, a hundred stories?" Tony guessed. "One hundred and twelve," Natasha corrected distractedly.

"Either way. Shouldn't have survived. FRIDAY, check the security tapes. What happened to that guy?"

"Playing files," FRIDAY said almost immediately.

A small screen appeared. The agent was falling, falling, falling - and hit the ground in a smooth roll, then stood up easily as if nothing had happened.

"Show this to the team," Tony instructed. A holograph beamed out of Natasha's wrist, and she held it out for everyone to see.

"Who can possibly do that?" Bucky asked when it was over.

"Well shit, don't ask me," Tony said defensively.

"Sir!" FRIDAY exclaimed, tone urgent. "What's up, FRI?"

"There has been one spotting of Peter Parker."

\-------------

"So he just - appeared. Out of thin air?" Tony asked, throwing a pen across the room.

"That seems to be correct, Boss," Tony slammed his face into the table at FRIDAY's words.

"So he appeared, bought bandages with cash at a Target, and disappeared."

"Yes."

Tony slumped back in his chair. "Any suggestions?" He asked.

FRIDAY paused. "Well. He showed up right after the HYDRA attack. I recommend finding a HYDRA agent that would know what's going on and tell you."

None of SHIELD's spies were particularly high up in the rankings.

But there was one person Tony recently met that seemed special within HYDRA.

Sadly, it was also the person he had blasted off of a 112-story building.

"See if you can locate that one HYDRA agent, yeah?"

FRIDAY's voice came up again, with a hint of smugness. "Got it, Boss."

\--------------

"So, you're finding the guy," Natasha said, leaning against the wall. "You'd be right," Tony muttered, distracted. "And you think he can find Peter?" She asked. "Hypothetically."

Natasha hesitated. "And you don't think he's hostile? He looked really angry before he left. Plus, he attacked Steve."

Tony paused. "Yes, well. He's our best bet, unless there's someone better you can think of?"

Natasha shook her head. "Shall we go catch an agent?" She offered, sticking out her hand to pull Tony up from his chair.

"We shall," Tony replied, grinning as he accepted her hand.

\-------------

They searched the city, but couldn't find him, despite everything.

That was when Nat had the idea.

"We didn't destroy the Biltmore, because it's a tourist place. Does that mean HYDRA could still be there?" She asked excitedly.

Tony grinned at her. "You are an absolute genius."

Natasha smirked. "Comes with the job. Can't really be an idiotic assassin," She pointed out. "You're not an assassin anymore, 'Tasha. You're an Avenger."

The woman smiled softly - gratefully.

With that, they flew off to the estate.

\-------------

The agent was there.

He was sitting in the same red-and-black hoodie, in the bowling alley of the Biltmore.

Tony worked his way around, toward the agent. "Hey," The agent said in a voice raspy from disuse. "I thought you'd come."

Tony frowned, and gestured for Natasha to come out.

"What would give you that idea?"

"I know you."

And just like the day in battle, the agent moved fast.

He was kicking Tony to the ground, mask already in place, and wheeling to face Natasha, slamming her into the wall.

Something happened, and the agent stumbled backwards, letting out a bloodcurdling scream. Natasha brushed herself off. 'What's going on?' She mouthed to Tony. 'No idea,' He replied, firing up his repulsors.

"Let's take him in."

Natasha rushed forward at the agent, but he simply tossed her over one shoulder and kicked her to the ground.

Tony didn't hesitate.

As soon as he saw a gleam of silver, he had equipped a gun and fired off five rounds.

They all hit home on the distracted agent.

It wasn't a knife. It was a phone.

Tony had just shot a potential ally five times after an assumption. And he had already thrown him off a building.

It seemed to be enough for the agent to collapse to the ground, twitching. Natasha stood up and stooped to handcuff the agent, then making eye contact with Tony.

"Let's take him to the jet and get him medical care. He can give us information, at least," Tony said, seizing the agent around the wrist and pulling him into the air.

Chills rose as Tony realized how light the agent was.

Like Peter.

Not now.

Tony and Natasha ran back to the jet, agent in tow and bleeding severely. Somehow, multiple wounds were beginning to close, despite the fact that bullets remained in them.

After cuffing the agent to a bed in the Med Bay and connecting him to the various devices after patching their wounds, they had decided to take off the mask.

"Ready?" Natasha inquired, arching an eyebrow from the other side of the unconscious agent.

Tony managed a smile. "It won't matter much anyways, there's a billion to one chance that I'd know him," He pointed out.

Nat shrugged and unceremoniously pulled off the mask.

Then she recoiled, gasping.

Tony stared at the passed-out body of Peter Parker.

Natasha was pale. "Did he...?" Tony knew exactly what she was trying to ask. Did Peter betray them?

Tony wasn't sure he'd want to know the answer.

"FRIDAY, when did Peter start acting weird?" Tony managed through the whirlwind of fear, betrayal, and anger.

"Approximately 4 and a half weeks, Boss," FRIDAY replied factually. "And... did anything odd happen around then? Check Karen's feeds." "Okay."

The beeping of the heart monitor suddenly lengthened into one, drawn-out beep.

Natasha met Tony's eyes, a silent question there. 'Should we save him?'

He almost wanted to say no. But if there was any possible chance that Peter didn't betray them, that this was a clone or Peter was being controlled...

Tony couldn't risk that.

Tony darted over to the boy's side, quickly adjusting settings and let the IV release some epinephrine into the body.

There was a terrible silence as the noise continued. Tony raised the dosage.

"I have found something, Boss," FRIDAY exclaimed suddenly. Hope sparked in Tony's chest.

"What is it?" Tony inquired. "Mr. Parker interacted with a possession formerly belonging to the villain you defeated shortly before. It appears he had the intention to bring it to you, but... perhaps it's easier if I show you."

A video started playing. Peter was crouched in a decimated building, staring at a glowing item among some rubble.

"Mr. Stark would want this, right?" Peter mumbled aloud, reaching out to grab it. As soon as his hand came into contact, the brightness increased. Peter tore himself away from the object, trembling. "I should probably tell Mr. Stark," He had whispered, before turning to swing away.

"What happened here?" Tony asked. The entire video had given him whiplash.

"It seems to be a possible situation that Peter is undergoing mental tampering, and he isn't in fact a danger to us, only the other person."

"I'm going to kill that son of a bitch," Tony muttered. Peter was okay - kind of.

Peter was flatlining again.

Tony rushed to Peter's side, heart pounding, when a hissing sound emanated from the bed. Tony briefly looked at Natasha, checking that she had heard, too. When he received a sharp nod, he returned his attention to Peter.

A small cloud of black smoke puffed up from his body, and Peter stirred. Tony pulled out a gun and aimed it directly at Peter's forehead.

Just in case.

Peter blinked his eyes to focus them, and his eyes immediately latched onto Tony, then the gun. "What the- what's going on?" Peter asked in evident confusion.

Tony scoffed. "Drop the act. We know you're doing something to Peter."

Peter made eye contact with Natasha in a disbelieving stare. "Are you okay, Mr. Stark? It's me, Peter. We once built a lego death star together because Ned couldn't come?"

Tony exchanged a glance with Natasha.

"Would someone please tell me what's going on? Because all I know was- okay, remember when we were fighting that dude? And we won? I found this glowy thing in the rubble. Oh! And then at some point a bit more recently, I saved your life? Not sure how, but I did. I'm sure you had it handled, but -"

Peter's rambling was more familiar by the second, and Tony engulfed Peter in a hug.

"Ouch! Shit, why does everything hurt so badly?" Peter cursed, inspecting himself. "Oh. You were shot. Five times," Nat told him, slightly suspicious but mostly relieved.

"Ah. That explains it. Who?" Tony sighed, turning away. "Me. My bad."

"What?" Peter asked disbelievingly. "Why? You just shot me while I was asleep?"

Tony laughed bitterly. "You sure as hell weren't asleep."

Peter stared intently at Tony for a few seconds. "It wasn't your fault," He said. Tony raised an eyebrow.

"You weren't even there, kid. Plus, I shot you. I'm pretty sure it was my fault."

Peter scoffed. "Yeah, as if you don't lecture me on having a guilt complex that size. If I shot you because-" He broke off staring at Nat pleadingly.

"If Peter shot you because you were posing a threat to him, what would you think?" Natasha provided smoothly.

Tony hesitated. "Well, good for him, he knows what he's doing! He needs to live."

"So, when the roles are reversed, why can't you forgive yourself?" Natasha countered.

Peter's POV

Out of Tony's current view, Peter had blanched and shook at the words 'roles are reversed'.

Had he tried to hurt Tony?

Peter was silent for the rest of the trip, and a lot of the time when they met up with the Avengers again.

In fact, he was doing quite well until Tony cornered him in the Med Bay.

Of course, it was less of a 'cornered' issue and more of a 'Peter was confined to a bed and couldn't actually leave' issue.

"Hey, kid," Tony said softly. Peter flinched away.

Had he hurt him?

"I need - I need to know what happened," Peter managed. "Who did I hurt?"

Tony sighed. "Nobody, actually. I definitely hurt you more than anything," He finished the last sentence almost silently. Peter picked up on it using his enhanced hearing.

"What do you mean, you hurt me? You could never hurt me," Peter pointed out. Tony rolled his eyes. "Oh yeah, blasting someone off of a 112-story-building and then shooting them 5 times isn't hurting someone."

Peter could tell Tony was more affected than he was letting on.

The rest of the team had been filled in on what happened, and the evidence checked out, so the whole issue had been really resolved. Thor had taken the weird murder cube to Asgard for no apparent reason other than to get it away.

Peter opened his arms for a hug. "You didn't know. I'm 100% sure of that, if nothing else. I know you, Mr. Stark. You could never be a bad person to me."

Tony was tearing up. "I love you, kid."

Peter choked out an "I love you too.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the late update again! 
> 
> This didn't turn out as long as I expected ;-;
> 
> So I'm not 100% sure if I'm going to update this weekend. I've been getting some terrible sleeps (last week my grand total was 19 hours) and I literally passed out while making this, so that's why it isn't up until now 
> 
> If I have time/I'm bored, I'll work on an update. But, if I don't update this weekend, I'll be back on track for next weekend!
> 
> Sorry!
> 
> Have a good day/night/afternoon/evening/whatever
> 
> At any rate, I hope you enjoyed :)


	16. Protect You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> a ton of stuff happens but it leads to fluff :)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For the first time ever, this one shot also features the one and only
> 
> Morgan Stark!!!
> 
> *insert air horns here*

Ice cream.

Peter only wanted to get some ice cream with his kind-of-not-really-little-sister-but-she-called-him-her-brother-and-he-wasn't-complaining.

"I want mint chocolate chip!" Morgan squealed, running up to the glass case in excitement. Peter laughed and pulled out some money from his pocket - what he had found on the road a few days ago.

To be honest, Peter's financial position was struggling quite a lot. Peter wouldn't tell Tony, ever. Not many people wanted a 16-year-old to work for them, especially with jobs in such high demand after the Snap.

The man working behind the bar smiled at the girl's antics.

"One scoop of mint chocolate chip on a cone, please," Peter told him, grinning. The worker obliged immediately, taking a large amount of ice cream and putting it into a waffle cone.

"And for you?" He inquired.

Peter flushed. The money he had found wasn't enough for both of them.

"I'm not getting anything, thank you though!" He said hastily, smiling brightly.

Morgan gave him a confused look. "But you love this ice cream, Petey! That's why you brought me here? Who doesn't like ice cream?" She asked. "I'm not hungry, Morguna," Peter teased, poking her in the stomach, causing the little girl to break down into giggles.

Peter quickly handed over the money, and the ice cream man passed him the cone.

Or, he tried.

The cone fell to the ground with a small splat.

Peter's hand was frozen, trembling, in midair. The man apologized immediately, but he wasn't listening.

Spidey Senses.

"Morgan, I need you to get underneath the table. Don't come out, okay?" Peter said, bustling the small girl over to a booth, much to the confusion of the seven-or-so other customers.

Morgan must have seen the urgency in his eyes, because she nodded meekly and huddled backward into the shadows.

"Sir, what's going on?" The ice cream man asked, confused and wary.

"Something's happening. We need to hide or get out of here. Fast," Peter instructed, looking for a place to take all the civilians.

Too late.

The little bells on the door sounded as about twelve people ran in, brandishing guns.

Chaos ensued around the small shop, with only one woman in her right mind enough to call the police until the first man spoke.

"Put the phone down," He said, pointing the gun at her.

Fear in the woman's eyes, she laid the phone on the table and hung up. The leader's attention swiveled to Peter.

"Where is she?" He asked, staring at Peter.

"Where is who?" Peter inquired, attempting to act innocent. "Stark's kid. You know the one."

Peter made a show of looking around the restaurant. "I don't see her, nor do I know why you'd think she'd be with me," He bluffed, praying that none of the fellow ice-cream buyers would rat him out.

A woman at the front of the crowd scoffed. "Please. We saw you come in here with her," She pointed out.

_Shit._

"What do you want from her, anyways?" Peter asked defensively. "We want her dead," The woman answered flatly.

Peter kept his eyes trained on her, careful not to let his gaze flick to the booth Morgan was hiding in.

"Why would you want that?"

_Keep them talking, Peter._

"Stark acts without thinking how his actions affect the normal people. This is simply... a lesson," She said. "That's one hell of a fucked up lesson," Peter retorted.

Instantly, twelve guns were trained on Peter's head.

"If you don't help, we'll get rid of you," The first man said. "Oooh, ominous," Peter replied, smirking. "What could be more cliché?"

The woman scowled. "Are you seriously going to get in our way?" She queried in disbelief.

"Yep," Peter confirmed.

All of the other customers were watching the interaction in a shocked silence.

Peter's heart was racing.

Tony would never forgive him if Morgan was hurt.

Morgan was his _daughter, _for fuck's sake. But Peter...

Peter was expendable.

Peter could die and not affect anything.

Sure, Tony may be upset for a little bit, but everything would resolve itself quickly.

Morgan, on the other hand, was special. Tony would be destroyed if she was hurt in the way Peter was sometimes on patrol - of course, when it was bad, he didn't tell the older man.

Peter inhaled shakily as his Spidey Senses went off, and he had to force himself not to move in order to protect his identity.

A bullet went right into his leg, but Peter refused to scream. Instead, he felt his pulse jump as pain ripped through him, centralized at the wound.

The woman leered. "Care to tell us where she is yet?"

Peter was about to spit at her when a small voice echoed from the corner.

"Don't hurt Petey!" Morgan yelled in a tiny voice, face the picture of uncomprehending anger.

"Morguna, no!" Peter called. He could hear the sirens only a mile or so away. The police would be here any minute.

The woman's eyes lit up as they landed on Morgan crawling out from under the table.

"It looks like we don't need you after all," She whispered, voice sickly-sweet.

Peter knew what was going to happen before it did. He quickly pressed a button on his watch, secretly telling Karen to send the message he had prepared since the Snap.

The gun was raised, and time seemed to slow down.

_3._

Peter folded his uninjured leg beneath him and braced himself to jump. Like he had said. Peter Parker was expendable. Morgan Stark was not.

_2._

Peter lunged across the room, positioning himself to angle into the path of the bullet and protect her at all costs. Police were about to open the door.

_1._

He made it, tumbling in front of the small girl and into the gunshot's path. A glimpse of Morgan's terrified face as the sirens grew to a wail in the background.

_0._   
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


**Tony's POV**

Tony ran into the area that was swarming with police officers, heart racing.

_Did they get away? Could they have run in time?_

People - about twelve of them - were being loaded into various patrol cars.

Tony scanned the area for any sign of his kids.

"Morgan?" He yelled, pushing his way through a crowd of people. "Peter?"

"Daddy!" Morgan wailed, blocked from his vision by the fray.

_She's safe. They're safe._

Slowly calming down, Tony shoved his way to the front of the group to see Morgan sitting just outside the ice cream shop.

Rushing to her side, Tony thanked anything and everything that she was safe.

"Morguna, god, I thought I lost you," Tony breathed, pulling her into a hug.

Incessantly, beneath his skin, beat another question.

And that's when Tony realized what was wrong about the picture.

"Honey? Where's Peter?" Tony asked, heart racing.

Murmurs raced through the crowd - _'he protected her,' _one woman was saying; _'he saved her life,' _a man was adding, shocked.

_No. Please, no._

"Petey- he-" Morgan hiccuped before breaking down into unintelligible sobs. Tony grabbed the nearest person. "Keep an eye on her," He instructed a man wearing an ice cream uniform. The man nodded quickly and shifted slightly into a protective stance.

"Let me through!" Tony yelled, trying to make his way over to the ambulance.

_Please. Please. Not again._

Doctors were crowded around a makeshift bed. The person lying on it was hidden from Tony's view, but clouds of red were staining the sheets all around them.

Tony ran up to the group as they were discussing. "He needs transfusions! Does anyone know his blood type?"

A doctor noticed Tony and moved out of the way.

_No. What the fuck happened?_

Tony managed to stammer out a somewhat-persuasive-seeming sentence: "I'll take care of him from here."

He texted Natasha quickly: _I need you here. You have one minute._

Attached the location, sent.

Within thirty seconds, Natasha was there with Clint.

"Shit. Shit, shit, shit," She was repeating as she helped move Peter into her car.

Clint looked like he was having a mental breakdown.

Tony ran to collect Morgan from Ice Cream Man and they all got into Natasha's car, Tony the only one in the back with Peter, holding the boy's hand.

His mind was flying everywhere.

Tony was trying not to think of the paleness of Peter's face, the way that it could only happen due to lack of blood.

Trying not to think about the thick wad of bandages keeping his kid alive, but getting rapidly soaked in red.

Trying not to think about the silence in the car, only occasionally ruptured by Morgan's broken sobs.

Peter's hand tightened around his, and then started weakly tapping him.

Morse code.

_I-M-S-O-R-R-Y-I-D-I-D-N-T-D-O-B-E-T-T-E-R._

Tony turned to face the boy, reeling, but he seemed to have slipped back into unconsciousness.

\----------

Life support machines were everywhere.

"Shattered ribs, resulting in a pneumothorax. Evident hemothorax. The bullet grazed his spinal cord..." Helen paused from listing off the injuries.

**Translation: shattered ribs = punctured lung. He's also bleeding like a lotttt.**

"How did he get shot?" Tony asked flatly, hardly paying attention.

Bruce swallowed. "I'm not sure you really want to know that."

Tony slammed his hand against a table. Sparks of pain shot up from his wrist but he ignored it. "I need to know what's going on."

Helen and Bruce traded looks.

"We checked the security cameras. The attackers were there for... well, for Morgan. To kill her. Peter jumped in front of it, just in time."

Stupid fucking kid.

Tony wanted to throw something across the room. Yes, he was obviously glad that Morgan was safe, but if Peter didn't wake up...

Bruce and Helen left the room, and FRIDAY came active.

"Boss, you have one message," She said gently. Tony scoffed. "Ignore it. I have clearly more pressing things to do."

There was a pause.

"It's from Peter."

Tony froze. How was that possible? Peter had been unconscious for the past hours.

"Play it."

Peter was projected from a hologram in the wall, anxiously rubbing his hands together.

_"Hey, Mr. Stark. If you're playing this... I'm either dead or close. Or, you know, you found it on my watch, and as you clearly know, I'm not great at hiding stuff from you."_

Hologram-Peter laughed awkwardly.

_"At, uh, at any rate, whatever happened here: if I decided to send this, I knew what I was doing, Mr. Stark. And if it ended up leaving me here... I can't exactly say 'here', really, because I don't know what's going on over at your end at the moment. But if whatever I decided to do that put me in whatever position I'm likely in with you... it wasn't your fault. This is because I understood the risks."_

Tony laughed bitterly. "Clearly you need to learn. They came there to get revenge on me. And they took it out on you."

Hologram-Peter hesitated, before a hint of a smile passed over his face.

_"I was giving you some time to say whatever you needed to about me being wrong about the fault of the issue. I know your guilt complex, Mr. Stark. I'm not stupid. At any rate, you are wrong. Whatever happened, it wasn't because of you. Know how I know that? Because I know you. And you would never hurt me. And, uh, I'm sorry. Because you must be feeling really shitty right now. I really hope you never have to watch this, but if it does come to pass again, I have to make sure you hear this. Don't blame yourself, okay?"_

Hologram-Peter stood up from where he was sitting against the wall.

_"And, Mr. Stark?"_

Tony looked attentively at the hologram.

_"I love you."_

And then it winked out.

Tony broke into a sob. "I love you too, kid."

They had never said that to each other before.

Either too shy or too scared.

...

Too late.

\----------

The heart monitor was incessantly beeping as Tony glared at it.

Peter had been out for a week now, and hadn't shown signs of waking up.

Morgan had visited Peter several times, thanking him for saving her.

If only he was awake to hear it.

The wounds had mostly been healed through, but something was stopping him from waking up. Evidently, when the bullet damaged his spinal cord, it had screwed up Peter's body.

"Boss, you have one new message from Peter," FRIDAY said urgently.

Tony's head shot up. "Again? How?"

Could Peter be doing better? Was he awake? Just for a bit?

"After a week of inactivity since sending the first message, Karen sent the message at Peter's request for the situation."

FRIDAY started playing it.

_"Hey, Mr. Stark! If you're hearing this, you've heard the other message. I assume. I don't - uh, I don't actually know. You may have had more important things to do."_

Tony felt his eyes sting. Peter thought Tony could have had more important things to do than try to help Peter and save his life. What could be "more important" than his last message? Did he think Tony would just leave him to die?

_"Oh! Uh, forget I said that. Um. So if this is working right, I'm probably dead. Or, you know, comatose or something. Like I said in the last message, I don't really know. At any rate, um, I just need to say one last thing." Peter laughed, a bit nervously. "I keep telling myself I shouldn't make anymore, but uh. I'm not sure how long that's going to last. But if there's one thing I need to be able to say, it's that whatever happened? It's not your fault. You couldn't have done anything to change it because it's already happened. So... be happy? Please?"_

Tony paused, sighing.

"How am I supposed to be happy when you're so far away?"

Days turned into weeks.

Weeks into months.

And as the leaves turned to vivid colors reflecting autumn, nothing seemed to have changed.

The outlook, Helen had said, was not very good. 

Morgan wanted her brother back.

\---------

Tony was doing his daily visit to Peter's quarters, holding the boy's cool hand between his. 

Talking about what had happened recently. 

"Morguna is starting elementary school. Her first day is soon. She wants you to be there," Tony said quietly. 

Silence.

"I miss you, kid," Tony admitted. "It's too quiet around here, even with Morgan."

Then Peter's hand tightened around Tony's.

"Pete?" He asked hopefully, signalling for a doctor. 

The boy's eyelashes fluttered, and Tony quickly told FRIDAY to shut off the lights. One eye cracked open, and then the other, and they landed on him.

"Mr. Stark?" Peter checked hoarsely, glancing around the room.

Tony let out a choked sob. "You are never, ever allowed to call me that again."

Peter's eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "What?" 

"You're my fucking kid, okay? And so help me, if you ever pull a stunt like that again, I will beat your ass into next year," Tony managed, trying not to cry.

Peter's mouth twitched into a slight smile. "I... okay?" He replied, a bit confused. 

"Seven. Months. You're grounded."

Peter's response was lost among the crowd of people rushing over to help him.

Tony was brought out of the room, much to his displeasure. He was pretty sure a doctor there would have a hell of a bruise from taking a punch straight to the face.

\----------

When he was allowed back in, Peter was frowning, propped up on the bed.

"I can't move my legs," He told Tony in frustration. "They say it'll be a few weeks because the bullet grazed my spine and something about the nervous system and reactions or whatever. I wasn't really paying attention."

Tony let out a relieved sigh. "Trust me kid, I'd be more than willing to help you out."

Peter's face suddenly turned regretful. "I'm sorry, Mr. Stark. I should've done more," He whispered guiltily.

"Like what?" Tony demanded, anger - at himself, not Peter - rising inside of him. "You did everything perfectly apart from the fact that you got hurt? And guess what? You did the best you could! And I'm really damn proud of you!" He yelled.

Peter pulled a face comparable to a bewildered puppy.

"Mr. Stark, you're yelling nice things about me again and it's really confusing."

Tony couldn't keep up the stern demeanor, and instead broke down into sobbing as he moved in to hug Peter. The boy hesitated before doing his best to hug Tony lightly.

"You're not allowed to get hurt. You're not allowed -" He hesitated. "You're not allowed to leave me again."

Peter smiled softly.

"I won't. I swear. I'll always stay."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> lmao it's a shame tony was the one that left
> 
> hahaaha depression
> 
> This was mostly just filler. I rushed through parts of it to get content up haha
> 
> Kinda short as I work on a chapter I call "Adoption". 
> 
> It's really, really, really not cliche actually and almost definitely not what you think.
> 
> my ao3 update schedule is kinda spotty because i update wattpad and sometimes forget this but yeah i'm trying haha
> 
> At any rate, I hope you enjoyed this!


	17. Forget Me Not

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> woohoo some more amnesia stuff but we got a villain and it's overall better

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was trying to think of a good title for this and I'm 100% this was perfect. I'll explain at the end. Theories up here are perfectly accepted and I'd like to see them.
> 
> Organic webs!
> 
> I'm not a doctor. Don't come at me if any of this is incorrect.

Tony woke up in a place.

And all he knew was his name, so that was really fun right off the bat.

A kind-looking man was rushing around the room, before pausing beside him. 

"Tony!" He exclaimed gleefully. "You're awake!"

Tony nodded hesitantly. What the hell was going on?

"I am awake... who are you?" He asked, searching the man's face for signs of emotion. The man's face fell, and surprise registered in his eyes.

"My name is Bruce Banner," The doctor replied after a moment. "We- uh, we're friends. I'll explain in a moment... Helen?"

A woman rushed into the room, eyes landing immediately on Tony. 

"What's going on?" She - Helen, Tony assumed - inquired quickly. 

"There's a possibility of a form of amnesia... he doesn't remember who I am," Bruce explained. Helen's eyes narrowed as she turned to Tony.

"Don't be worried. I'm going to ask some questions quickly," Helen said reassuringly. 

Tony motioned for her to go on.

"Do you remember your name?" She asked. "Anthony Stark. But I prefer Tony." Helen nodded. "Do you know either of us? From before just now?" 

Tony shook his head, dropping eye contact.

"I'm going to bring you some people. If you recognize them, tell me. If not, it's okay."

Helen gestured for Bruce to open the door, and he stepped outside and started talking in a quiet voice.

Three people hesitantly stepped back in with Bruce.

Number one, a woman with ginger hair and a compassionate, if worried, smile.

Number two, a man with dark skin and a prosthetic leg and a wary look.

Number three, and perhaps the one Tony was most drawn to, a slightly scrawny boy with messy brown hair and brown eyes, forcing a smile that didn't quite hide the fear in his eyes.

Helen paused to look at Tony, who shook his head almost imperceptibly. 

It didn't look like anyone but Helen had seen it, until he saw the boy drop his eyes to the floor as a bit of pain slid into them.

Tony took a long look at the boy, trying to figure things out about him. There wasn't a lot to see.

His clothes were remarkably unruffled, as though he had recently changed into them. The messy hair indicated that he had been recently wearing something over his head - a hat? A mask? - and it had been hastily smoothed back. The boy's hands were fidgeting at his sides, likely from nerves. A last, quick glance showed a defeated slump of the shoulders, as though he had already expected the outcome, but was hoping it was different. It was a hint of acceptance, too, like he was accustomed to loss. 

Tony tried to draw conclusions about the others, but it was difficult. His attention kept being drawn back to the boy. Something was off about him. 

_Dark bruises around the boy's throat. What were they from?_

Tony's eyes widened and he felt a surge of protectiveness, which was odd. He decided to keep his mouth shut, though. 

"Tony?" The woman asked hesitantly. Tony's confusion must have showed on his face, because the woman swallowed determinedly. "My name is Pepper Stark. I'm your wife."

Shit.

Tony had no idea what to say. 

Next, the man cleared his throat. "My name is James Rhodes. You can call me Rhodey. I'm... I was your best friend. We met at MIT in college."

Tony forced a nod, trying to hide his confusion.

Finally, the brown-haired boy. Tony was silently praying that he wasn't his son. That would just be even more painful.

"I-uh, my name is Peter... Peter Parker. I'm, uh..." The boy cast his gaze around, between Pepper and Rhodey. "I'm your intern."

If this kid wasn't his son, or anyone that close to him, then why was he here?

He noticed Pepper and Rhodey shoot surprised glances at Peter, and saw a faint look of shock on Bruce's face. Something about the kid was off.

Tony paused, frowning as he tried to figure it out.

Peter noticed his what-probably-looked-like-anger look and a quickly-stomped-down expression crossed his face, too quickly for Tony to decipher entirely. Pain, definitely. Guilt, for some reason. 

Pepper shifted almost imperceptibly toward Peter, in a slightly defensive stance.

Tony doubted she even realized it.

Bruce said something softly to the trio, who nodded and left the room.

Tony wanted to protest. He wanted to talk to his family and the kid.

Tony actually really wanted to talk to Peter. There was something about him that kept drawing his eyes to the boy. 

_Bruises... around the throat..._

The words burst out of him as soon as the conclusion connected.

"Peter was strangled!" 

Bruce turned to him, surprised. "Is that a memory, or...?" He inquired.

Tony shook his head quickly. "No! Bruises, around his neck! His throat! You can't get those easily! And the pressure points-"

Helen cut him off. "Don't worry about it, Tony. Bruce, go talk to Peter. Check if he needs Med Bay."

Bruce nodded and left the room.

A brief thought occurred to Tony.

_Could Peter have done this? Caused my amnesia? Did I do... that in self-defense?_

As soon as the thought surfaced, Tony dismissed it. Peter was too scrawny, not muscular enough to inflict the sort of damage that Tony must have sustained.

Helen was talking, some spout of medical shit, but Tony wasn't paying attention.

Alarms started blaring through the room. A voice in the ceiling started talking. 

"Protocol Number 774337 - Hurt Spider - active. Alpha 8-10 Users, you know what to do."

It was clearly an artificial intelligence, and Helen noticed Tony's face and quickly explained. 

"That's FRIDAY. She's an AI you designed to help with the basic functions of the compound."

Helen briefly explained what the compound was before Tony interrupted.

"What's the spider? Do I own a spider or something? Why would I be so protective of it?"

A variety of emotions passed over Helen's face - surprise, understanding, even a hint of amusement.

Helen hesitated, clearly having an internal debate. 

"I don't think that's a good idea to talk about yet."

There was a commotion outside of Tony's door. A woman with bright, wavy red hair was carrying a boy with tangled- Peter. 

The woman was holding Peter.

Tony jumped out of bed, protectiveness surging in his veins as he flung the door open to confront the woman.

"Tony?" She asked in disbelief and confusion. "What's going on? Why are you out of bed?"

Tony stared at her. Who was she?

The name came to him suddenly, beyond his comprehension.

"Natasha. What are you doing?" He asked.

Surprise was clear on her face. "You remember me? I thought-" Tony cut her off by raising a hand. "Just the name. I don't know how, don't ask me. A few names are coming to me right now, again, not sure. Pepper Potts, you, Rogers... that's not the point. What are you doing with Peter?"

Natasha frowned at him. "I'm taking him to Med Bay with Clint."

A man waved from behind Natasha, though Tony could see 'Clint' continuously glancing back at Peter with a protectiveness in his eyes.

Bruce ran up from behind them. 

"Don't worry, Tony, Peter just contused his carotid artery- wait, what are you doing out of bed?" He asked. 

"He bruised his carotid artery!? And you're telling me not to worry? He could die from that!"

"He won't though. Peter's already healing. We kinda had to drag him from his room, because he passed out shortly after he got back." 

Tony stared at the three people (plus Peter). "How did he even come to see me with that?" 

Natasha hesitated. "He's healing."

With a jolt, Tony realized that the bruises were almost completely gone.

Clint followed his gaze. "He heals fast."

_"The type of injury that doesn't heal all that fast."_

_A man that would have been very handsome if it weren't for the scar..._

_He was in a room, and it was dark, and dusty, and-_

Tony gasped as he returned to the halls of the compound.

"-ny? Tony!" Natasha was saying, waving a hand in front of his face. 

He looked around, alarmed. "I was- there was a man-"

Bruce sighed, offering him a hand. "Let's get you back inside. Rest. That was probably a memory. Tell us about it... but later."

Tony accepted the man's hand reluctantly, and Bruce nodded at Natasha, who continued down the hall. 

Helen stepped neatly around the two and went after Natasha and Clint.

\---------

Tony tried to sleep. He did. But his mind kept swirling. What happened? Was Peter okay? Who did that? What was going on? How would he get his memory back?

A few hours later, Bruce came in. "You know, Tony, you can sleep," He said, a bit amused.

"I can't. I need to know how to get my memory back," Tony replied quickly. 

Bruce smiled. "Don't worry. We have our best man on it. If you'd like, you can go around the compound. FRIDAY - the AI, she's awesome - can make sure you get back, and you steer clear of people who don't know what's going on."

Tony nodded and thanked the man gratefully, before stepping out of the room.

"FRIDAY?" He inquired, feeling a bit awkward.

"Yes, boss?" The smooth voice of the AI echoed from the ceiling. 

"What room do I spend the most time in?" Tony asked. "That would be your private lab, boss." 

Tony exhaled. "Okay. Take me there."

"Go to the elevator. I'll take you. I lit up a path."

Tony followed a path of lights that turned gold and found the elevator FRIDAY was referring to.

The ride was quick, and the lab was apparently on the 87th floor. 

Tony stepped into the room, expecting to see a few small work benches. He wasn't expecting the vast array of space, windows and well lit areas, with holograms and tools lying everywhere.

He also wasn't expecting to see Peter rushing around the room, searching through things and typing on holograms and writing things in notebooks.

As Tony watched, the boy bit his lip and wrote something down a notepad he was holding, then rushed over to flip through a book lying idle on the desk with such fervor that Tony thought Peter was going to tear the pages out. The boy pushed loose hair out of his face, and wrote another thing down quickly.

Tony took a step forward. It was so silent that even he couldn't hear it, but Peter clearly did.

Peter's hands jerked in surprise and the notebook fell to the floor. He whirled around, tense, but relaxed minutely when he saw Tony.

"I thought this was my private lab," Tony said, a wry smile forming on his face.

Surprise, followed by guilt flashed over Peter's face. 

"Sorry, sir," He stammered, collecting papers strewn across the desk.

Something about Peter's words was fundamentally wrong. 

"Did you... always call me sir?" Tony asked, confused.

Peter swallowed and shook his head, dropping his eyes as he double tapped his watch and all the holograms disappeared.

"Then why... now?" He continued hesitantly. 

Peter still didn't look up at Tony. "Because you don't know me."

Tony flinched. Suddenly frustration was rising up in him. "So? Maybe you should try and do what you normally do! Then I might know!"

Peter finally made eye contact with Tony, but Tony immediately wished that he hadn't. The boy was looking like a kicked puppy, and that was _not _ supposed to be on his face.

"I thought it may be better for you to adjust before I start talking to you like normal. I'm just your intern, anyways," Peter said finally. 

"But you're not," Tony retorted. "Clearly you're not. I'm not stupid. How-" He broke off, a thought occurring to him. "How are you even here? If you bruised your carotid artery, you should be in the hospital for weeks, if you even lived!" 

Peter froze. Tony could practically see his mind running at a mile per minute. He decided to be nice and change the subject.

"Anyways, why are you here? I thought, you know, whoever the person who's working on my whole amnesia case would be here. Bruce said they're our best guy. Do you know where I could find him? I wanted to talk." Tony asked, trying to soften his voice.

Peter paused slightly. "That's me. I'm the only one he told to work on the case, anyways."

Tony laughed a bit. "You?"

He hadn't meant for it to sound so scornful, or so demeaning. 

Peter flinched, evidently hurt. "Sorry. I'll just go now," He said, walking past Tony quickly.

He grabbed Peter around the wrist as he tried to pass. 

"No! I'm sure you're smart as a whip, just-" Tony broke off as he saw Peter's pupils dilate with fear. 

Tony opened his mouth to ask the boy what was wrong, but Peter yanked his arm away from his grasp with a surprising force, causing Tony to stagger forward a few steps. 

Peter ran out of the room swiftly.

By the time Tony had regained his composure enough to go after the boy, the papers Peter was writing had been deposited on a desk and Peter was jumping out of the window. 

Tony stared, the circumstance not quite registering until the window was closed and Peter had vanished. 

Then he screamed.

Rushing to the window, but Peter was gone. 

"FRIDAY, take me to Pepper!" Tony exclaimed frantically, before rushing down the lit path. Pepper was close, so it only took half a minute to get to her. 

"Pep, the kid - Peter, he just jumped out of the window. We're on the 87th floor, Pepper!"

Pepper looked a bit frustrated. 

"I _told _him he wasn't allowed to do that for the next few days! Don't worry about it, Tony."

Tony gaped as she turned and started to walk away. "Are you serious?!" He yelled. "He just jumped out of the _fucking _ window, and you're again telling me not to worry?"

"Oh. _Oh._" Pepper's eyes widened. "He'll be fine. He can stick to walls, and shoot webs from his wrists. It's a bit odd to be saying this to you, but it's a normal occurrence."

Tony stared at her. "Pep, if this is revenge for the 12% thing, I swear-"

Tears formed in Pepper's eyes. 

As Tony watched her, the situation processed in his head. "Pepper! Shit. Okay."

"How much do you remember about me?" She asked, voice a bit broken. 

"Everything," Tony breathed, smiling as he pulled her into a hug.

They stayed like that for a minute or so until they broke apart.

"And everyone else?" Pepper asked. Tony racked his brain. "Rhodey! Platypus! And Nat! And Happy! But... I think that's it."

Pepper beamed at him. 

_"It will be such a shame that you're not going to remember anything. Well. You won't be able to interfere with the plan anyways."_

_A flash of ink, in a very distinctive shape-_

"Are you okay?" Pepper asked, concerned. 

Tony looked around, dazed. "Another memory. This scarred man - I think he did this to me."

Pepper frowned. "Any idea why?" Tony shook his head.

"I'll text Peter, maybe he'll have an idea of villains on the street. FRIDAY, if you could do that," Pepper instructed. FRIDAY affirmed that she had sent the message.

"Why would he know?" Tony demanded. "He's a vigilante," Pepper said carefully.

Tony was pretty sure he had a miniature stroke. "A - what, fourteen year old kid? A vigilante? On the streets?" He yelled.

"I'm fifteen."

The voice came from the window. Tony probably had a heart attack.

Peter was sitting in the window frame with a strange suit on.

"Spider-Man," Pepper filled in helpfully. Peter nodded affirmatively. 

"What were you doing?" Pepper asked softly. Peter's eyes flicked to Tony, then back to Pepper. "Mysterio."

Pepper gasped. "Did he..." She trailed off as Peter looked at the ground. "It wasn't his fault. It was the, uh, the train thing. 'Smart as a whip, but just... a sucker.' You know." It was clearly making Peter uncomfortable just saying the words.

"Anyways, I uh, I got your text. Can you describe him?" Peter asked, abruptly changing the subject. Pepper turned to look at Tony expectantly.

"Uh... scarred face, he had a... tattoo?"

"Did he say anything about his plan? Or... do you know what the tattoo looked like?"

_"It's a shame you won't be able to care enough to find him. Like I said, you won't remember where you are now anyways..."_

_The tattoo- it was on his neck, in the shape of a-_

"A scorpion," Tony told them, a bit confused.

Dread filled Peter's eyes as he reached to touch his neck warily.

Pepper noted the gesture. "Is he the one...?" Peter looked away, not answering.

"And... as for the plan. I know he has one. And he said... 'you won't be able to care enough to find him.' Whatever that means. And... 'you won't remember where you are now anyways.'" Tony quoted. 

"So this guy, whoever he is, wants to... take someone? Peter, who's on the streets right now?" Pepper asked.

Peter slowly dropped his hand from his neck, where the bruising was now practically invisible.

"There have been a lot of guys on the streets lately. So far, one of them that I've met are cool. He was wondering where to find you guys, I told him I'd get him the address. I'll have to do that."

"And this guy?" Pepper pressed, ignoring Peter's discomfort. 

Peter looked at the ground.

"The Scorpion. His name's Mac Gargan."

"Just one guy?" Pepper checked. 

Peter paused, eyes flickering around the room. "Yes."

Tony stared intensely at the kid, trying to figure out if he was lying or not. What were his tells?

Did it matter? Clearly Peter could handle it himself. And if he got hurt, he would call them.

Peter paused, looking between Tony and Pepper. "You remember her," He said softly.

Tony wasn't about to lie. At any rate, Peter was just an intern. It was natural that his wife and some friends came first. And yet something seemed _wrong._

"I do," Tony replied, a bit stiffly. Peter nodded, stomping down a small bit of pain in his eyes. "That's good. It's a start. You'll be better soon."

Peter forced a smile, likely for Tony's sake, as he wrote something down on his hand. The address for his friend, Tony assumed.

"Anyone else?" Peter asked. "Rhodey, Natasha, Happy, Clint... Bruce, I think. Parts of him, anyways."

Peter nodded, smiling brightly as he turned.

"I'll check the streets. If I see Scorpion anywhere, I'll, uh..." The boy trailed off. "Take care of it," He finished. 

With that, the boy dropped back out of the window, only to swing away again on a web.

Pepper shook her head, a fond smile on her face. Then she noticed Tony looking at her, and hastily stomped it down. 

"He's adorable. Gets into tons of trouble, but it's worth it."

\-------_a few hours later_\------

"I've called his phone - and that connects to his suit - twelve times! Why isn't he answering?" Pepper demanded of nobody in particular.

"So... he just disappeared?" Tony asked, sitting on a couch. "Yeah... tapes can't pick up a single thing about Spider-Man after... half an hour ago. He was talking to a vigilante in a mask, read off the address. Then he went swinging... disappeared," Natasha filled in for Pepper.

"What's the first step?" Tony inquired hesitantly. "Find the vigilante," Natasha began. "He can give information as to where he was headed, what he was talking about," Clint finished smoothly.

"So where do we go to find him?" Pepper asked.

"Nowhere."

A heavily accented voice, from the corner of the room. The vigilante was standing there in a blue suit and a mask. Pulling it off, white-blond curls spilled out over a familiar face.

"Pietro?" Wanda was the one to speak. The man managed a weak smile. "Hey, Wanda."

"How are you alive?" Steve asked, overjoyed. Pietro shot him an amused look. "You told me to walk it off."

Steve looked like he had a circuit blow.

"What do you know about P- Spider-Man?" Natasha asked, all concern and haste. 

"He was searching for the Scorpion. He had a hunch that he was the one Gargan was searching for. It checked out, after all. Peter screwed up some major plans of his a while ago. At any rate, Scorpion's main enemy is Spider-Man. If Stark could remember more..."

Frustration bubbled up inside of Tony. "Jeez, Pietro, if I could remember more, I would!"

"I never said that! I know it's not under your control!" Pietro retorted hotly.

Tony scoffed. "I hardly even see what this has to do with me! Peter's an intern. An _intern. _Clearly I hardly know him, especially if he's just going to call me 'sir', or 'Mr. Stark' all the time-"

Pepper cut him off. "He hasn't called you Mr. Stark since you woke up," She said softly.

Tony rolled his eyes. "And yet! If he were even important to me, wouldn't he call me Tony?" He shouted. "Tones, if you would just listen-" Rhodey began. "No! I'm done listening. I get it, I have amnesia. I am a genius, remember? I think I can be trusted to do some basic deciphering. I took all the clues. I reiterate, if he were even close to me, wouldn't I be more to him? He's an intern-"

"Peter is your SON!" Pepper yelled, finally breaking.

Silence swept across the room as Tony and Pepper stared at each other, trembling as adrenaline drained away.

"But he's not," Tony breathed.

Things weren't adding up, and there was too much to process, and yet he couldn't - if Peter was only an intern, why was Pepper saying he was Tony's son? And if he was Tony's son, then why did he introduce himself as an intern? Why did everyone love him? Wait, that answer was obvious. Tony had already seen it.

_"Tony Stark. I suppose you're wondering why you're here," Mac Gargan said, leering at him. "Go to hell," Tony managed, spitting at him. His hands were tied roughly behind his back. "I simply need you out of the way so that I can take care of our lovely little Spider." Tony's breath caught in his throat. "Don't you dare touch him!" Tony warned, heart racing. _

_Gargan laughed. "You are not the one with the power here, Stark. I just need you to... not go after the kid. And you cannot exactly go after someone you can't remember, can you?" Tony's eyes widened. "You can't- you can't do that," He stammered. Gargan only smirked, approaching with a device. "Can't I, Stark?" Tony tugged uselessly at his bonds. "Pray you remember Peter when you wake up, though you won't. It'll be one of the last times you ever see him."_

Tony was gasping on the floor as people rushed around him. 

"Tony, what did you see?" Clint asked, almost hopefully.

"There- there's a place! And Gargan, he made me forget Peter... Gargan has him. I don't know where. Somewhere dark, probably a warehouse because it was so dark and dusty and empty, and also because it's that cliche thing that all villains do because they probably have no better ideas, and he's doing something to Peter-" Panic had unlocked a state in Tony where he went into overdrive.

"Nat. Run scans on warehouses. Search for life forms, ones matching Peter and Gargan. Pietro, get on the streets with Wanda. Pepper, get the Rescue armor. Clint, you're with me. We're going to track Peter's path. Tony, you and Rhodey help Pietro check manually. Natasha, as soon as you locate something, get us. Then get onto the field. The rest of you, ask around, check warehouses, just search."

**Peter's POV - i can't believe it's the first time in this oneshot so far**

Heavy cuffs were wrapped around his wrists and legs, and he couldn't tear them apart. He was vaguely aware of multiple bleeding wounds from gunshots, in his stomach, shoulder, knee, and hand. 

_They'll find me. I know they will. Tony would-_

Except Tony wouldn't. Tony didn't know him. Tony didn't care. Maybe he never did. Maybe that's why he was remembering everyone else, and not him.

Did Tony want to forget Peter?

Well. It's not like Peter would blame him. 

A door opening shocked him out of his reverie.

"Peter," Mac Gargan stated, mouth quirked in an insanely triumphant leer. 

"Scorpion," Peter replied, eyes focusing on the tattoo on the man's neck.

Peter's suit was still on. Droney was with him. He could plant a tracker and escape, if he could get rid of these stupid chains-

"Don't try to escape. It's not going to work," Gargan said, almost amused. "I have guards at every corner. Vibranium chains. Whatever web shooters you're using aren't going to work, we tased you multiple times, it would've fried them."

_Idiot._

"Droney," Peter whispered, almost silently. "Tracker."

Droney slowly dropped out of his suit, and Gargan clearly didn't see it as it crawled through the darkness and placed the tracker. 

"You've caused me and my guys quite a lot of trouble, Spider-Man."

Peter groaned and rolled his eyes. "I just wanted some food, man. Really, I was about to head back, maybe order some pizza- wait, no, I'm broke, I can't do that. This really messed up my day though, man."

Scorpion scoffed, brandishing a gun. "One more word and I'll shoot you again."

Peter decided to try his luck. "Okay, got it."

Gargan narrowed his eyes, and in a swift movement, Peter got a bullet in his other shoulder. Choking on surprise, Peter moved to fling his arms across the wound, only to be restricted by the chains.

"You _are _ pathetic. Can't even put up a fight. Stark will be glad to be rid of you."

The words hurt more than the gunshot.

Mr. Stark probably wouldn't miss him. That much was true.

"Well, I can put up a fight, it took about 20 people, was it, to get me here. Not exactly fair odds, you know," Peter pointed out.

Mac Gargan turned and stepped out the door, gesturing to a guard, who passed him a small metal cube. In a few seconds, he had stormed up to Peter and shoved the cube against his lips. Peter kept his lips pressed tightly shut - he wasn't ingesting anything this psycho gave him.

It turned out not to matter, because it, in a quick movement of nanoparticles, spread across his face in a tight gag of metal. 

Peter tried to keep talking through the gag.

"Be thankful I'm not stitching your lips together," Gargan said scornfully. "Of course, it's still an option if you insist on being troublesome."

Peter had never shut up so fast in his life. 

And then he immediately decided against it.

_S-O-I-S-T-H-E-R-E-A-N-Y-P-O-I-N-T-T-O-T-H-I-S?_

Peter was tapping in Morse code. And from the looks of it, Gargan knew it. Fury in his eyes as he spun and glared at him. 

"One more time. Just - shut up, don't talk or sign or tap. Otherwise I will do everything I can to shut you up forever, either until we kill your or break you. Now, which would be more fun?" Gargan pondered aloud, smirking at the poorly-hidden look of fear on Peter's face.

They have to come. They'll come.

...Right?

**Tony's POV**

"I've got facial recognition! And a license plate!" Natasha yelled over the comms. 

"Send them to the screens. Get out there, Nat," Steve instructed, with barely concealed happiness. 

"They're not in a warehouse, they're in a basement. Of a restaurant over in 76th," Natasha told them.

Tony, who had remembered everything about Iron Man, shot off to the location Natasha sent.

Somehow, Natasha was the first one in the door. The Avengers stopped questioning Natasha a long time ago. However she got from the compound to the restaurant in less time than it took to fly... that was a secret she would keep.

Voices echoed from the basement. 

Natasha crept silently through the door after a minute of searching. The rest followed suit.

A crowd of people - at least 50 - were in the hallways... no, the tunnels. The basement was connected to tunnels. 

Natasha turned to beckon the rest in, and chaos ensued.

People were yelling and shooting, and falling around them as they made their way toward wherever the tunnels led.

Hopefully to Peter.

And finally they got to a room where it ended.

Gargan was standing in the doorway. When he saw them, he swiftly disappeared into the crowd of people. Tony wanted to go after him, but Peter was currently the priority.

And there he was.

On the ground, with thick cuffs holding Peter to the wall around his wrists and ankles. A gag over his mouth. Bruises and blood everywhere.

Peter looked exhausted, and purely hopeless. 

Natasha was by his side in an instant, followed closely by Pepper. The rest of the Avengers followed. 

Tony stood awkwardly near the door. He wished he could come bearing news that he had remembered Peter, but he _hadn't. _ Except for maybe the 'Mr. Stark' thing back at the compound.

"Tones?" Rhodey exclaimed, voice heavy with fear and thinly veiled disgust. "They had vibranium. We need to take off the wall, or melt it. Can your repulsors...?" He left the question open, knowing Tony would fill in what he needed to.

"Yeah. Step aside, honeybear. Hope you guys brought your sunscreen, because this shit is about to get hot," Tony announced, firing up his repulsors and holding it to the chain as close to Peter's wrists as he could.

"Mr. St'rk?" The boy slurred, clearly fighting exhaustion and fatigue. "Hey, kid. Let's get you out of here, yeah?" Tony replied, doubting Peter would be able to hear him.

His suspicions were confirmed when Peter didn't reply.

After a few painstaking minutes, they were able to free Peter, leaving only cuffs with small chains dangling off of them.

"Let's get to Med Bay," Clint said, eyeing Peter's wounds. Were those _gunshots? _ "Fast."

\---------------

"Several gunshots - to the stomach, shoulders, knee, hand, and multiple in the lower left leg. Severe contusions. Signs of strangulation. Probable electrocution. Some bones broke and healed wrong. We're taking care of it," Helen told the team.

\--------------

"He won't shut up," Helen complained less than half an hour later. "We pulled out the bullets and bandaged them, but he keeps talking. We can't get him to sleep."

A corner of Natasha's lips quirked up in a smile. "He grows on you, in that manner."

\---------------

A few days later, Peter was standing in front of them again.

"That dude was a complete jerk," Peter managed, smiling brightly.

"We've still gotta find him," Clint admitted. Tony waited to see Peter's reaction - probably fear.

He wasn't expecting the dismissive shrug.

Peter pulled on his mask, covering his whole face except for his mouth.

"Hey, Karen? I put a tracker on someone," He paused, before elaborating. "He's a bad guy." Peter finished with a satisfied nod.

Tony let out a surprised laugh. Peter grinned at him, lenses over his eyes widening in amusement.

"Yeah. Yeah, that dude. Oh! Thanks, Karen. Yeah, put that on the screen. Thanks!" 

Tony was reminded oddly of watching someone on a phone call.

A small dot was in the middle of the city. 

"Let's go get that son of a bitch," Tony exclaimed, almost triumphantly.

Peter jerked his head over to him, and his eyes widened slightly at Tony's language. 

Tony almost laughed again, which would be the exact second time since he had woken up.

\--------------

He was ordering a sandwich when they jumped him.

It was almost pathetic. Someone who had caused such a big disturbance in their life, ordering a sandwich. 

Gargan saw them and ran for the doors, only for Natasha to kick him back violently. 

"You're not escaping, подонок," She hissed. 

Peter flipped into the restaurant. "Hello, Mr. Gargan. Miss me?" He inquired cheerfully. 

"I miss watching you suffer," Gargan retorted from the floor. Natasha slapped him harshly. 

"I wanted to do that!" Clint complained, aiming an arrow at the man's heart from the corner of the restaurant.

In a quick movement, Gargan pulled a gun.

Delayed, Tony realized he should've expected this. 

Gargan was behind Peter in an instant, gun held to the boy's temple.

"Not another step. Drop your weapons."

Natasha dropped her gun, and Clint's bow fell to the floor. Gargan's eyes narrowed as he saw a small handgun in Natasha's belt. 

"All of them."

Natasha sighed dramatically and pulled out the gun, and about ten knives. Then she paused, and from various locations, pulled about fifteen more out.

Peter was watching this with a vaguely amused look. 

"So, what's gonna happen? Super secret villain plan?" He asked, seeming bored.

The Scorpion shot him in the foot. Peter just yawned exaggeratedly. "I think I've built up a tolerance," He said casually.

"Don't touch him," Pepper threatened, raising a repulsor. 

"Do you really think you can take me down before I shoot him in the head?" Gargan asked, barrel of the gun against Peter's forehead again.

Peter moved fast: twisting and kicking the man in the knee, sending Gargan reeling as his finger squeezed the trigger, the bullet went through Peter's stomach but he didn't hesitate, simply slammed the man viciously across the head, knocking him out instantly.

"Yes. Yes I do," Peter told the unconscious body of the Scorpion.

Then he turned to the rest of the time. 

"That was exciting," He said, bored, as blood trickled down his stomach. 

Tony rushed forward. "Fuck, kid, you've never had any self-preservation instinct, but this takes it to a whole new level. What is this, the seventh time this week you'll have to go to Bruce? And the first six were Electro, at least he's taken care of, jeez, Pete!"

"Sorry, Mr. Stark!" Peter squeaked as Tony pulled him into a tight hug.

"No- how many times do I have to say it? Stop with all of that sentence. No more apologies. No more 'Mr. Stark'. Tony. Or like, Dad. I mean we were planning to adopt you anyways, but-"

Peter cut him off with a gasp, eyes shining. "You remember? You remember me?"

Tony reeled, shocked. He laughed, breaking into a grin. "I remember you. I remember - fuck, kid, I remember you," He whispered joyfully. 

"I thought... I thought you might not want to," Peter replied quietly. 

"Peter!" Tony gasped, scandalized. "Why wouldn't I want to remember you? You are such a brilliant kid - god, you're amazing. I would never want to forget you!"

Peter folded back into Tony's arms, though he barely remembered when the boy pulled away. "It would take more than that to take me away from you," Tony whispered.

They stood, embracing, for a long time, until Peter pulled back again.

"Wait, you were planning to _adopt me?_ "

"Peter, you- you're bleeding out. This can wait until later."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> YAY another longer chapter finally.
> 
> Now for the title details:
> 
> Okay, so Forget Me Not is a type of flower, right? So that's already kinda cool, especially because this oneshot was about amnesia. BUT! Remember the main villain? I hope so. The Scorpion? Well, Forget-Me-Nots are also called Scorpion Grasses. I feel really proud for finding this title.
> 
> At any rate, if you're fine with, ya know, torture scenes, let me know either up where I asked originally or here. Some people love it, some people hate it, some simply do not care in the least.
> 
> At any rate! I hope you enjoyed that chapter. 
> 
> Why do I always feel like I'm ending a YouTube video when I close my chapters with the author's notes?
> 
> "Please like and subscribe for more weekly content :PPPP"
> 
> Anyways. It's past midnight for me and I got some 'fun' school tomorrow sooooo
> 
> and psat scores so yay .-.
> 
> Hope you liked that, and have a brilliant day/night/whatever.


	18. Platonic

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> oh god it's been so long  
my computer broke but i finally got a new one
> 
> platonic soulmate au :>

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is platonic (unless you want to read it as romantic i guess, i don't really approve of starker but whatever floats your boat (by the way, if any of y'all didn't know, platonic is friends. it's like the greek concept of philia/storge, which is friend/family love, rather than eros, which is romantic)
> 
> spideychelle but if you want you can imagine Wade or Johnny instead or something
> 
> platonic soulmate au background: things you write/draw on your skin appears on that of the others, scars also appear but they don't physically cause pain or physical impairments: here's our good friend the issue there, Peter has super healing, and doesn't often see any scars because they heal on his body (what? plot convenience? ... nooooo)
> 
> romantic soulmate is everyone has a soulmark on their wrist, the one matching yours is your romantic soulmate

Peter was shifting in his seat anxiously as Ned rambled beside him. "I can't believe we're presenting this at Stark Industries! That's _so _cool!!" He exclaimed, finally pausing to take a breath. Peter flashed a quick grin at his best friend. It was a shock that Ned wasn't his platonic soulmate: everyone had a romantic and platonic soulmate. As it turned out, MJ was Peter's romantic soulmate, and they had figured it out about a year ago. 

A tall building broke the horizon in front of them, and Peter's breath caught in his throat. Sunlight was glinting off of the windows and metal, creating a beautiful scene. 

Midtown High had received an invitation to present their Science Fair at Stark Tower, and the two winners would get internships under Tony Stark and Pepper Potts. Considering the circumstances, Peter had decided to do a project focused on the Avengers and quite a lot of stuff about it. The projects had been shipped over to the main room earlier that day, and once they arrived, they would receive their designated locations.

The bus slowly rolled to a halt. "Okay you guys, front rows first!" Mr. Harrington announced, gesturing for the rest of the group to get off of the bus. Two more buses were following close behind, but Ned, MJ, and Peter were placed on the same bus.

Peter stood in quiet awe as he took in the building in front of him. A small sensation covered a part of his left arm. His platonic soulmate! Peter hadn't met them yet, but they were communicating through writing. Because personal details were not sent, Peter had taken up writing in blue pen for a week after his soulmate asked vaguely about his gender. Peter's soulmate did the same, so Peter really only knew his platonic soulmate was a guy - who got the crap beaten out of him quite a lot. Peter's healing got rid of the scars though, so it didn't last long. Also, his name started with a T! Because he signed everything with it until Peter got the hint.

_"Hey, are you okay? I noticed you left imprints on your palms?"_

A smile broke out across Peter's face as he replied. _"Yeah, I'm fine. Just a bit nervous :) "_

The response was swift. _"Need to talk about it?" _ Peter actually laughed aloud. _"I'm okay, haha. Just a school thing."_

Peter and his platonic soulmate had already established that his soulmate was way older than Peter - about 30 years, which meant that it was probably that they'd either be an odd pair of friends or have a mentor or father figure relationship. 

_"you got this!" _

The man never stopped helping Peter when he was stressed with jagged, hasty letters scrawled on his arm, and-

He was shocked out of his reverie when Flash shoved past him roughly and joined a group of his friends. 

"What a dick," MJ muttered, stepping up beside Peter. He grinned at her, then made an pantomimed face of awe. "Really? I never would've guessed!" MJ shoved him teasingly. "Oh, now you're just doing the same thing!" Peter exclaimed indignantly. The girl just laughed and waved at Ned, who had been previously lost in the crowd.

Peter looked up at the building and noticed a movement around the 80th floor in a window. Looking closely, he saw the distinct shape of a man wearing sunglasses. When his vision focused slightly, he recognized the man as Tony Stark. An involuntary gasp escaped Peter's mouth and he quickly stifled it with an exaggerated cough. Mr. Stark frowned down at him - could he see Peter from all the way up there? The answer hit him in a second: the glasses. He'd heard about the sunglasses being a huge piece of technology. 

Mr. Stark turned around and disappeared. 

**Tony's POV**

After talking to his soulmate, Tony was watching the group from Midtown step off the bus, using his glasses to make the view clearer and larger. Suddenly, he noticed a kid watching him. Was that possible? He was almost a fifth of a mile into the air! When the kid gasped, and recognition sparked in his eyes, Tony _knew _ the boy had recognized him. But he was 80 floors up, nobody could see clearly from that far, especially not through tinted windows. Right?

"FRIDAY, get facial recognition on that kid," He demanded. "I can't do that, Boss," She replied. "What? Why?" Tony asked. "I couldn't get a clear reading on his face. He looked down as I tried to scan him, and I couldn't use old photos, he was constantly in motion," FRIDAY retorted, a bit of exasperation clear in her tone.

Tony turned to go downstairs. "Well. I'll figure it out later. First, I need to go to the lab and finish up a few equations."

**Peter's POV**

It had been a few minutes since the incident with Tony Stark, and his soulmate was writing equations on his arm again. They had long since established it was fine for the platonic to write on his arm, and it proved that he was pretty smart. 

Numbers and codes were being frantically scrawled on his skin, and Peter laughed a bit. MJ nudged him in the side. "Is your platonic writing again?" She inquired. He nodded, grinning. 

Twenty minutes had passed as they made their way into the building. An additional twenty passed as they got initiated and given badges that 'were imperative to their visit'. And his platonic soulmate was still writing.

Ned watched Peter's arm in awe. "He's gonna run out of room," The boy predicted. "You should stop him." Peter sighed. "Probably," He consented, bringing out a pen.

_"Take a break!" _ He wrote quickly, a few inches below the bottom of his soulmate's equations.

The writing halted for a few seconds, then resumed under Peter's message. _"I will, I will. Just give me a minute." _The equations started continuing. _"T..." _ The words stopped again. _"Okay, okay, fine. I have to go do something anyways. See ya later, P." "Bye!" _

"Hey! Kids! Pay attention, yeah? This stuff is important!" The announcement was from a man at the front of the crowd, who was wearing an impeccable suit and short hair with hints of a beard. Peter recognized the man as Harold "Happy" Hogan, Tony Stark's head of security and chauffeur. 

As Happy escorted them into a large rotunda on the 90th floor where rows of projects laid out. He gave out clipboards as people walked in. 

Peter was definitely stressing. What if the man recognized him as Spider-Man? What if he thought that he was a threat? 

Instead, Happy barely glanced at him and asked: "Name?" He fought for the words to surface. "P-Peter Parker," The boy stammered out. The head of security leaned over, grabbed a clipboard, and passed it to Peter. "Table 19A," He said dismissively, then motioned for him to move along. Peter stumbled over to Ned. "Where are you?" He inquired. "I'm 18C," Ned answered. "I'm 19B," MJ added. Peter beamed: it looked like they were all pretty close together. "19A," Peter replied in turn.

They found their table rather swiftly, and Peter dropped his backpack beside his assigned table. Looking up at his board, he took in the project. He had done an evaluation and reproduction of the basic Avengers materials. After analyzing the arc reactor, he had done a study and recreated it, finding a way to make it smaller and more eco-friendly, _and_ generating more energy. After that, he had done similar bits with the flying mechanisms. Next, he had done a bit on the gamma radiations that caused the Hulk, recreated the weapons of Hawkeye and the Black Widow with better capabilities, completed an analysis of Captain America and the Winter Soldier, improved the Falcon's Redwing, and brought in his newest prototype of webshooters.

Peter still didn't understand the dynamic between Spider-Man and the Avengers. They didn't know his identity, but they had worked together on multiple missions, and Tony Stark had made him a suit. 

A lot of students had done projects on the Avengers, but they were mostly superficial. 

Even so, Peter wrote to his platonic soulmate. _"okay so now i'm more stressed haha i thought i did something original, you know? but then i just realized like twenty people did the same thing as me... yikes."_

The response was instantaneous. _"i'm sure yours is better than theirs tho" _ Peter laughed slightly. _"i hope so haha."_

The next twenty minutes were mostly Peter standing around, waiting for the official announcement. 

When the clock struck noon, Happy announced over the intercom that the fair had officially begun.

A judge approached him very quickly, and Peter did his best to answer all of the woman's questions. He felt he did a good job, and by the approving nod the woman gave him, it was confirmation enough.

A lot of people came by his station, astounded. Apparently Tony Stark had invited a lot of famous people, because he recognized quite a few people who came by.

An hour later, Happy called for a fifteen minute break, then Tony and Pepper would move on to the other half of the room - Peter's side.

_"i'm so bored," _ his soulmate wrote. _"aha me too. there's a lot of people and a single one of me and i'm not sure i like it," _ Peter replied.

MJ tossed him a snack bar, and Peter caught it immediately. "Love you too!" He informed her from the table next to hers. MJ just laughed at him. 

_"i know right? i'm at this school science fair thing and it gets overwhelming." _

Peter choked on a bite of his granola bar. _"you're at the midtown science fair?" _

_"are you?" "YES" _

"MJ! Ned!" Peter exclaimed. "My platonic soulmate is here!!" Ned rushed to Peter's side, eyes wide. "Really? Who is it?" He inquired. "I'll ask if there's a place we can meet, I guess."

_"wanna meet somewhere?" _Peter wrote._"or... we could make it a competition..." _T replied. _"i'm interested." "whoever finds the other first gets free food from the other person?" _Peter grinned. _"i like food. deal?" "deal. i'm gonna win." "not if i have anything to say about it!"_

Peter tugged his sleeves down, hiding the writing on his arms with a secretive smile. "What are you doing?" MJ prompted. "I'm gonna win," He replied, grinning. 

The fifteen minutes went by _very _fast, and Peter proceeded to scrutinize everyone who came to his table. Some were wearing short sleeves: striking them as immediate impossibilities. The ones with long sleeves either didn't have names starting with T's or didn't show any signs of writing to Peter's enhanced sight. Even so, he entertained their questions like a diligent student.

**Tony's POV**

His platonic soulmate was here. Tony already knew his romantic soulmate was Pepper - he was hoping to propose soon - but now he would get to meet P, who was somewhere in his building and hopefully they hadn't already talked. 

**Peter's POV**

Nothing productive was happening, until he looked over and saw Tony Stark talking to Ned about his project. That meant they were coming to him soon. Peter straightened, running a nervous hand through his hair, careful not to let his sleeve drop in case T saw. 

Tony looked over and his eyes widened almost comically at Peter's project. The man walked over after a brief dismissal to Ned and took in the project. 

"Wow," Mr. Stark managed. "I've seen a lot of Avengers exhibits today but... wow. What's your name?" The man asked. 

Peter attempted to gather his wits about him. "I- uh, Peter. Peter Parker." He didn't miss the brief flash of interest in Tony's eyes. _Was it possible...?_

"I see... would you like to tell me about this project?" Tony asked. Peter hesitated at the way the man's eyes flicked to his arms - possibly trying to look for writing?

Now, Peter prided himself on not being a complete idiot, and the idea that Tony Stark was Peter's soulmate wasn't out of the question. Of course, Peter could be reading too much into the situation like when Timothy Pierce approached his table a bit before Tony did. 

In the meantime, Peter explained his project to Tony. The man was a bit more in-depth than the rest of the judges, but that was natural. 

Suddenly, recognition flashed in his eyes. "You're the kid that saw me on the 80th floor!" Tony exclaimed. 

The first thought that occurred to Peter was to play dumb. 

"You have an eightieth floor?" 

_Damn, not that dumb. _

Tony stared at him for a few seconds, clearly noting the obvious internal smackdown. 

"We're on the ninetieth floor, kid," He pointed out, a quirk of amusement at the corner of his mouth.

Peter buried his head in his hands. "Yeah, I know, I know..." He muttered, embarrassed. Straightening up, he let out a yelp of pain as his finger hit a nail on the table, slicing a tiny cut into its side.

Quick as a whip, Peter looked up to see a small scar on the side of Tony's finger. 

"Oh my god," He whispered. Tony looked at him, confused, before noticing the cut on Peter's finger. "You hurt yourself?" He exclaimed. "Doesn't matter! You're T?" Peter rushed the words out, frantic to beat the man before he noticed. 

"Wha- you're P!" Tony gasped. Peter beamed. "Does this mean I win?" He questioned. Tony scowled. "Damn. I guess you do." "Oooh. Language, sir. You know what Captain America says-" Peter broke off as confusion flooded Tony's face. "How do you know that?" He asked. "Oh. Um. It just seemed like something he'd do?"

**Tony's POV**

Tony wasn't an idiot either.

His eyes fell on the web shooters, and then caught Peter's nervous glance toward them, and then the fidgeting fingers.

"Ah, I see," Tony stated, eyeing the web shooters pointedly. "Aren't you a bit young?" Peter flushed. "I'd like to think I'm doing pretty well."

Tony couldn't deny him that, so he shrugged in agreement. "Well. This is not what I was expecting for the day."

Peter nodded awkwardly. 

"Well, I'm sure you're going to win this whole contest so you'll probably end up my personal intern. If not, here's my number." Tony scrawled his telephone number down on a spare sheet of scrap paper. Peter grinned at him and tucked it into his pocket. "Thanks, Mr. Stark!" He exclaimed. "Oh no. No, no, no. You're my platonic soulmate. You call me Tony."

Peter squinted at him. "Okay, got it Mr. Stark." 

Tony fell silent. Did the kid just sass him?? "Listen here you little shi-" "Oooh, language again. Better watch that, Mr. Stark!" Peter retorted cheerfully. Tony couldn't suppress a laugh. "Oh, this is going to be _so _ fun," He stated. 

**Peter's POV**

Ned grabbed his arm as soon as Tony left. 

"Oh my god, this is like the coolest day of both of our lives."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i lowkey wanted to do a soulmate au of something and i was like 'what about a platonic soulmate au?? :DDD' and then i was like 'lmao yeah lets stay up til 3 in the morning writing it' because some people assume i really diligently spread it out over the weekend,, nooo i write sunday.
> 
> through the day and night.
> 
> welcome to my life
> 
> have a great day ! :) hope you liked it!


	19. Mini-Fics Part 1 (The Spideypool Interlude, I'm Not Dead, etc.)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Collection of mini-fics! Even shorter than the usual oneshots but long enough? I guess haha.
> 
> (aka the chapter in which I can't commit to a plot for more than 900 words)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have writers block and too much time on my hands so... here's a weird thing I came up with. I got a new computer!! :D
> 
> Also I lowkey fell back into musical fandoms so that's fun. I might make a new book with some of those oneshots

**The Spideypool Interlude - Takes place a bit after Peter's identity comes out in the Social Media AU, before the adoption war. fulfills a few requests in that.**

Peter had recently shocked the world with his announcement that his 'boyfriend', Spider-Man, was actually him. It had sparked quite a lot of confusion at first - people wondering if it was a prank, or if the old Spider-Man had died - but that had died down. After that, Peter had been invited to many different talk shows to explain what had happened, and how he'd pranked the whole world. 

What the world didn't know, however, was that there was a new person that Peter had been around in increasingly large amounts. 

The person was Wade Wilson. Deadpool, the self-dubbed Merc-With-A-Mouth. Peter wouldn't admit it, but he had been slowly building a crush on the mercenary, and trying to stop the man from the murders he was constantly committing. It was working out relatively well, and the murder rates had thankfully gone down. 

They followed each other on Twitter now, and after meeting Matt Murdock, Daredevil, they had an account called Team Red, where they'd team up on different villains. It was actually quite fun, and it had brought the three of them closer - Peter and Wade were growing incredibly close, obviously, and Matt would often tease them about him having to be the third wheel. In fact-

"Peter!" Ned called, running across the school courtyard. Peter turned to grin at the boy - It was the first time they were back at school after the Peter x Spidey incident, and they were excited to see the reactions of their classmates.

MJ fell into line beside them with a deadpanned "Sup, losers?" The three of them fell into quick, easy conversation. 

The eyes of the other students followed them, and Ned couldn't help but laugh. "They're so confused, it's actually hilarious," He commented. MJ smirked. "We should place bets on who tries to be spontaneous friends with Peter," She proposed. Peter bit his lip to stop a smile. "As satisfying as it would be to see Flash grovelling for forgiveness, I don't think the teachers would condone that."

MJ just scoffed. "If Shuri were here, she'd agree with me," The girl pointed out. Ned hushed her. "Your girlfriend just wants to watch the world burn," He countered. MJ shrugged in agreement. "I will neither confirm nor deny these rumors."

To the teachers' credit, none of them acknowledged what had happened over the break. Nevertheless, students continued gawking at the trio in the hallways, and would approach, asking rapid-fire questions. Peter did his best to answer politely, despite knowing that their newfound interest was just because of his revealed identity.

It was nonetheless funny to see Flash looking like he was having an internal crisis at his lunch table.

Peter recounted these details to Wade at the end of the day as they sat at the top of the Chrysler building, watching the sunset. The actual journey up to the building had been quite chaotic, as Peter just climbed it rather easily and Wade had to do his best to not fall using various tools.

They had just finished fighting off a woman trying to steal a car, and adrenaline was running high. 

"Well it seems like he deserved it," Wade muttered, anger underlying the interest in his tone. "You know, I could just-" 

"No." Peter interrupted the mercenary mid-sentence. "Bu-" "No."

They chatted for a little while more, before deciding to post a picture on their Team Red twitter. Peter had his mask off and was grinning, while Wade took the picture of him. They ended up awkwardly captioning it 'photo creds to deadpool'. 

Responses had started rolling in quickly. The one that caught Peter's attention was a commenter that simply tagged #spideypool. 

"Hey, do you know what that is?" Peter asked, pointing at the comment. Wade stared at it, then grinned. "It's a ship name," He said, laughing. "As in - as in _they _ ship _us?_" Peter queried, embarrassed. Wade winked at him. "I am a highly desired person, baby boy, it would be shocking if you didn't return my affections."

Peter's mind practically exploded. Was Wade flirting with him?? 

"We could do the fun cliche romance thing. Kiss in the sunset?" Wade offered, looking genuinely serious. "You're _kidding," _Peter stated, shocked. The universe was never this kind to him. 

"Only if you... want me to be?" Wade was unexpectedly hesitant. "_God, _no," Peter breathed, pulling the mercenary closer. 

\------------

Matt cleared his throat. "Boys," He stated. Peter and Wade broke apart, whirling to face Matt. "That's going on our Twitter page," Matt said decisively, lowering his phone camera.

**Team Red @DreamRedTeam**

_[image attached]_

**SPIDEYPOOL**

OMG WE WERE RIGHT

**velociraptorr_**

okay before we start shipping this are we sure peter isn't deadpool too?

**I'm Not Dead - Peter and Tony-centric. Presumed dead au. Organic webs and stuff.**

Peter was just having a calm day at school, quite a difference from what was about to happen. He was walking home when his backpack got caught on a wall.

Or, you know, so he thought.

Peter whirled around, only to come face to face with a tall man who had grabbed his backpack and was leering at him. It had happened altogether too fast for him to react. His head was slammed roughly into a wall, and stars exploded behind his eyes. 

_Tony's POV_

Peter was supposed to be in the labs thirty minutes ago, and Tony was trying to find him frantically. The Iron Spider suit was disconnected and untrackable, as well as the original Tony had given Peter. His backpack was- in an alleyway somewhere, and hadn't moved for the last 45 minutes. 

Without hesitation, the man flew off to the location.

He bent down to find Peter's backpack, discarded on the ground. Sitting next to it was a Polaroid picture of Peter, crumpled in the alleyway, blood spreading into a small pool next to his head. 

Laughter echoed from the corners. A man and a woman stepped out into the light. Tony immediately pointed his repulsors in their direction. 

Anger was blurring his brain, and he hardly heard as the woman started monologuing about her dead son and how she wanted him to suffer equally. 

They showed him pictures of _his kid's - Peter's - dead body. _He was shot _in the head. _

"We dumped your kid in a trash dump. Quite fitting, isn-"

She was cut off, rather rudely, by Tony blasting her and her - husband? Boyfriend? - to death.

Tony collapsed in the alleyway and succumbed to sobbing.

_Peter's POV (o wow huge spoiler not like this is a presumed dead au)_

Peter's head hurt like a bitch.

That was his first recollection. 

His eyes hurt to open, but he did it nonetheless. He looked around and... was he in a garbage dump? 

The stench was immediately disgusting and overwhelming, so he pinched his nose closed, head ringing in pain. 

Peter touched the side of his head, which was coated in blood but scabbed over... had he been shot? Feeling around the rest of his head, he deduced that he'd been shot, but poorly. It had gone through the side of his head, but evidently missed his brain and come out diagonally. Overall, he hurt like hell, but was alive. 

Peter checked for his watch, which was thankfully still present. However, it was broken and missing pieces. He tried hitting the button for the Iron Spider suit to assemble, but it didn't work. 

"Damn it," Peter muttered, checking for his phone. That was, surprisingly, still present. The date confirmed when his watch said it was, but it was one 1%, and Peter hastily searched for his location: the Regal Garbage Dump. He knew of the place: it was about 17 minutes from his apartment.

He was about to text Tony, but his phone stopped responding, and died. 

Peter moved to shoot a web from his wrist, but realized there was nothing he could latch them on to. So instead, he walked. 

For hours. 

\---------

By the time he got to Queens, he was exhausted, bloodied, and bruised. 

He found one of the public shower buildings and managed to wash off all the blood and dry his hair and clothes.

Peter had no idea where to go first, so he instinctively decided to go to Tony. It was a short walk to the Stark tower, so he managed to get there through back alleys. He was able to make a pit stop at a stash of backup masks he had stored around the city. Nothing with technology, but enough to hide his identity. So he swung deftly up to the training floor and opened the window he usually came through. FRIDAY didn't have any cameras on this floor because Tony knew AI's were hack-able, and didn't want to take any risks. 

A loud clatter alerted Peter to the presence of another person in the room.

A dagger had dropped to the ground, and the holder - Natasha - was staring at Peter in pure shock and happiness.

"Peter?" She breathed incredulously. "I thought... we thought you were dead!" She exclaimed, rushing forward to hug him. 

"You thought I was _dead_?" Peter asked, surprised. Natasha pressed a hand to her mouth. "Oh god, yeah, we- there were these people who said they killed you, and they had proof..." She trailed off. "You need to talk to Tony."

And so Peter found himself dragged to the labs by his basically-aunt.

Tony was not rushing around, tinkering like he usually was. "Natasha, you're back again?" He asked roughly from where he was slumped, seated on a rolling chair.

"Mr. Stark?" Peter asked hesitantly. Tony froze. 

The man slowly turned around, and Peter saw tear stains tracking his mentor's face.

There were no words between the two of them as Tony practically flew across the floor to hug the boy.

"You're not allowed to leave like that," He whispered. "Ever."

**He's Not My Kid - various mini-shots of people thinking peter is tony's kid/meeting him**

**Pepper**

"When do I get to meet the infamous Peter?" Pepper asked. Tony looked up from his cheeseburger. "Wait, why do you want to meet him? You're not trying to corrupt my intern, right?" 

Pepper scoffed. "More like your kid. You talk about him practically all the time." Tony stared at her. "You're kidding. He's like... my apprentice." 

"Oh really? Then why did you put his report card on the fridge? You're an emergency contact at his school, and-" 

"Hi, Mr. Stark!" A voice called from the doorway. Pepper turned immediately. "Well, Pep, looks like you get to meet him today," Tony said casually. 

The boy standing in the door had tangled brown hair and wide eyes as he looked at Pepper. "Oh! You're Mrs. Stark. Um. Hi. Sorry, I'll go!" The kid - Peter - said hastily. "No, don't!" Pepper said immediately. "You... _are _Peter, right?" She asked. 

Peter nodded quickly. "Nice to meet you!" He said politely.

Pepper looked over to see Tony looking proudly at Peter. 

"Oh, you _know _ I'm right!" She exclaimed triumphantly. 

(Tony didn't deny it.)

**Rhodey**

"Oh, who's this?" Rhodey asked, walking into the labs. Tony was standing next to a teenager in the lab, who had apparently already heard Rhodey coming. 

Tony looked unexpectedly serious. "This is... my apprentice, I suppose you could say." Rhodey just stared at him in confusion. Tony noted his expression. "Do you remember? You know... Germany," He said, heavy emphasis in his tone.

Rhodey was temporarily taken back to a time in Germany, 17 years ago. A woman had been flirting quite obviously with Tony, and the two had left the party early... The man's jaw dropped. "_Tony!" _ He exclaimed disapprovingly. "That is so irresponsible! Does... does Pepper know?" Tony nodded gravely. "She... it took some convincing, but she's fine with it." 

Sighing, Rhodey shook his head. "You are insane."

\--------

Rhodey had taken the time to get closer to the kid - Peter - and he could easily see the similarity between Tony and his son. 

One day, Rhodey pulled Tony aside as the man made his way out of the lab. A serious question had occurred to him. "Peter's mom... is she okay?" Tony looked confused. "I- not really? His parents are both dead..." He trailed off.

"Wait, what?" Rhodey asked in blatant confusion. "But you're clearly alive." Tony looked shocked. "What?!?!" He exclaimed. "You- you said Germany, and we were there 17 years ago, and that woman-" Rhodey tried to explain.

"Oh. _Oh. _Honeybear, I think there was a great misunderstanding between us. _Berlin. _He's... the Spiderkid, remember?" 

Reality hit Rhodey like a truck. "Oh thank god. He seems so much like you- wait. You brought a _teenager to BERLIN?_" Rhodey yelled. "Well, that's my cue to leave, see you later!" Tony said hastily, running out of the room.

** Steve and Bucky **

Their first encounter with Peter had been quite odd. They learned he was the Spiderkid shortly after. Then they learned that Peter was Tony's son.

They had been relaxing in the common room when Pepper swept through like an organized tornado, looking for different items. When she had seen them, she called them over.

"Hey, can you guys find Peter? He's 17, pretty short, light brown hair, probably in the labs. Tell him I'll be in my office." She said, not exactly paying attention. 

"Who's Peter?" Bucky asked, entirely confused. "You know. Tony's kid," Pepper replied, writing something down.

She was out of the room almost immediately, having found a clipboard with some papers on it.

Steve looked over at Bucky, completely dumbfounded. "Tony has a _kid?_ " 

At Pepper's brief instructions, they went down to the lab and found a 'short, light brown-haired kid' spinning on a chair as he wrote stuff down. 

"Hey, are you Peter?" Steve asked hesitantly. The kid had already looked over, and he stammered out an answer. "I- um. Yeah, that's me."

Bucky could already see the resemblance between the two: Peter had clearly inherited Tony's love of science, and they did look similar in physical features. 

Steve seemed quite amused by the kid, in fact. "Pepper asked for you. She said she'd be in her office." He informed Peter. 

The boy quickly grabbed his notebooks and shoved them into the corner in a semi-organized fashion. "O-oh, thanks Mr. Rogers, Mr. Barnes," He said formally, then rushed out of the room. 

Steve and Bucky looked at each other, then mutually and wordlessly decided to go find Tony. 

The man was in the kitchen, making lunch. Steve cleared his throat, politely making his entrance known. "Hey guys," Tony said, turning around. 

"You didn't tell us about your kid," Bucky said petulantly. "He seemed nice, why couldn't I have met him sooner?" Amusement danced in Tony's eyes. "Oh, you've already met him. Remember Germany?"

"He's... that was _Queens?_ " Steve asked incredulously. "You have a 17 year old son who's also a superhero?" Tony rolled his eyes. "Everyone thinks he's my son. He's _not. _He's my apprentice." Bucky squinted at him. "Then why did you assume we were talking about Peter by 'your kid'?"

Tony looked like a deer caught in headlights, but recovered quickly. "Hey, get out of here and go make out or whatever. I'm making lunch. I'll see you guys later."

Bucky and Steve traded a glance, then left the room.

"Peter's definitely his kid, right?" "Yep."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hope y'all enjoyed! i'm not a dead author yet :>
> 
> if you guys wanna request mini-fics, i have a few requests i might use in these haha


	20. Apocalypse

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> i ended up doing a short zombie apocalypse shot: it's kinda like world war z without all the government mission stuff plus with a twist because it's boring if we don't have antagonists so we're not doin the deadly disease thing

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> feelin the apocalypse vibes amiright
> 
> (spideypool+irondad)

Peter was with Tony and a few others when it started.

News had been coming around from other cities: snippets of mindless people racing around, attacking and turning - that had been the word coined - others.

They were stuck in long buildups on the road when a motorcycle crashed through lines of traffic, knocking off the side-view mirror of a nearby car. Tony and Natasha stepped out of the car to see what was happening, followed by Peter and Wade quickly. That left the car empty.

Cars were oddly silent around them, leaving only a ringing in Peter's ears. A man in police uniform ran up to them.

"Get back in your car immediately! Stay with your-"

Whatever the cop was about to say was interrupted by a truck slamming into him and crushing through all of the traffic, plowing its way through the city.

Tony cursed and they started to head back to the car, when the crowd came. Floods of people, screaming and shouting, ran past them through the streets.

Natasha spotted something in the crowd and ran toward it.

Then Peter saw his first.

She looked like any other woman, except bleeding and decaying from multiple wounds - likely from where she had smashed her head against a car windshield. She tackled a nearby man to the ground and ripped into him, leaving the man spasming on the ground.

An internal clock started ticking in Peter's head: 12 seconds, then the man stopped and joined what had become a mass of mindless people running at the crowd. Just like on the news.

Peter screamed a warning to Natasha, who turned to run - but the zombies parted around her and didn't give her a second glance.

This had all clearly occurred to Tony, who was muttering under his breath. 

"Right. I'm sending for an airplane right now," The man said hurriedly, motioning for them to start moving.

Peter double-tapped his watch and his spider suit formed around him, and Tony did the same thing for his Iron Man suit. That left Wade, already suited up, and Natasha, who had made her way back faster than the horde - them having been delayed by taking down more passerby - and was handing guns to Wade.

Natasha swung onto Tony's shoulders in a practiced fashion and Wade grabbed onto Peter's waist.

"We gotta get out of here. Now," Natasha instructed.

"What about the people?" Peter protested. "We can't just leave them!!" The boy saw a small girl knocked to the ground and attacked by the people - no, by the zombies.

"We have to. We have no idea what we're dealing with, and if we're... turned, or whatever the newscaster said earlier, then the rest of them are screwed." Tony retorted. "We can't head to the Avengers complex, FRIDAY says that's compromised. Wade, would you let go of Peter for a sec?"

Wade dutifully let go for a few seconds, and a roar built in Peter's ears as a rocket came toward him. It was the newly familiar feeling of the Iron Spider suit, and Tony nodded approvingly.

"Much better," Tony muttered. "Okay. Wade, you can grab on. FRIDAY, deploy emergency override flight controls in 17-A."

Peter gasped as his suit adjusted to fire up repulsors just like Tony's. "Whoa, how long has this been there?" He asked as they adjusted so he was flying a few feet off the ground. 

A zombie lunged toward him but missed as Peter successfully navigated out of the way, and the four of them flew higher into the sky. 

"Long enough," Tony answered the question that Peter had voiced. "I'll put it on autopilot, you just make sure your boyfriend doesn't fall," He added, rolling his eyes.

Wade grinned at that remark. "I knew it! You love me!" He said to Tony, beaming, then tilted his head toward Peter. "Hear that? He loves me," The boy said proudly.

"Don't push it, Wilson," Tony scoffed in retort.

Natasha just grinned over her shoulder. "If it makes you feel better, I think you're well equipped to defend Peter, even if he is way out of your league!" She called to Wade, who frowned. "You know what, I'll take that as a compliment," The boy mused. "And trust me, I know Petey's well out of my league. It's a miracle he likes me!"

Peter laughed in disbelief. "We are quite possibly facing down the zombie apocalypse, and you are talking about my relationship with my boyfriend?"

"He's right. We should be talking about the important stuff. Natasha, why didn't the zombies go after you?" Tony asked the woman.

"To be completely honest, I have no idea," Nat replied. "I thought I was screwed, but I don't know what happened."

They were flying silently for a while, and then Tony spoke up again. "They've definitely gone after us though - the zombie went for Peter and Wade, and one tried to get to me while I was sending the suit - though clearly, that didn't work," Tony added, gesturing to his suit.

"Have you... heard from anyone else?" Natasha asked hesitantly. Tony sighed, shaking his head. "Phone lines and cellulars were knocked out. FRIDAY's a private network and backed up all over the earth - not to mention in space - but we all know Cap and Bucky are hopeless with tech, and the others either aren't connected or aren't responding."

Peter looked around as they finally stopped flying - they were in a warehouse, vaguely familiar as a Stark Warehouse Peter had seen in passing in a quiet corner of New York.

He stumbled to the ground as the repulsor in his suit sputtered out. Tony cursed. "I knew I'd have to implement an arc reactor somewhere in there. I didn't think there was space," He sighed. Peter made a face at him. "So? I won't be able to fly? I've never been able to do that before," He commented. The man shook his head. "It'll have fried the system. I'll have to make a new one. That was only for emergencies, so you'll have to switch to the older one."

"So... this is our safe house?" Natasha asked, changing the topic and sliding off of Tony's back.

The man nodded, and the four of them walked inside. Peter looked around and saw Tony punching in a code on a pin pad.

Faint whirring echoed through the empty air as parts of the floor and ceiling shifted to form an elevator.

Peter gasped in awe, before laughing loudly. "Why- why am I even surprised anymore?" He laughed, knowing well that the situation wasn't incredibly funny.

Tony looked over in Peter's direction, visibly concerned. "Hey, I know this is a lot," He said softly. "But, you're going into shock. Take a few breaths," The man suggested.

Wade wrapped his arm around Peter's shoulders. "I'm here if you need me," the boy whispered.

Peter sighed, shaking his head at the reality of the situation. A zombie apocalypse. This was straight out of sci-fi books or cheesy end-of-the-world movies. It was not supposed to be real life.

When they stepped out of the elevator, they were in a sort of technological bunker. Peter raised an eyebrow at Tony. "Our... zombie horde shelter?" He asked. "You specifically designed something for this?"

Tony rolled his eyes at Peter. "Not for... this, specifically. Just... zombie apocalypse." There was a long pause. "'Good thinking, Tony! We're so glad you have everything planned out! You're the best'!" Tony added mockingly, pretending to be a crowd of people.

There was another pause before Peter started awkwardly chuckling.

They all ended up in mild hysterics, all surprised and shocked.

When they abruptly stopped as reality set in, Tony led them to a small room where there were a ton of security cameras of Manhattan and the surrounding areas - Queens, Long Island, and more, not to mention tons surrounding the bunker itself.

"We need to try and get in contact with the others. Make sure they're okay," Natasha advised.

Tony nodded, looking up. "FRIDAY, can you send messages to everyone again?" He asked. "Yep," She replied simply through speakers in the ceiling.

There was a small silence. "You have one response from Wanda Maximoff," The AI announced. The four all breathed a collective sigh of relief. "What did she say?" Peter asked. FRIDAY paused. "She's en route to the bunker now, with Sam, Steve, and Bucky." 

Tony leaned back and sighed in relief as the others broke into grins.

A couple minutes later, when they arrived, the groups swapped stories.

"The zombies didn't go after Wanda or Bucky," Steve explained, clearly tired and confused. "They mainly went for me, actually, but Sam was mostly in the air."

Natasha hummed in acknowledgment. "They didn't go after me, either. But they did go for the others."

Tony frowned, thinking. "Well if we have to think what they have in common," The man began, "They've all had affiliations with HYDRA," Peter continued. "Through, especially, a direct line..." Tony followed. "So, if HYDRA is connected to the... zombies," Peter added. "Then they're probably behind this, or at least associated with how it started!" Tony finished. The two shared a high five as the others watched.

"That was kind of heartwarming and creepy at the same time," Sam mused about Tony and Peter's weird dialogue. Natasha hummed in agreement.

"So... what do we do to stop it?" Bucky asked. "Murder all of HYDRA?" Wade suggested hopefully.

Peter gave the boy an annoyed look. "That... won't help at all." Tony nodded in solidarity.

They were interrupted by the elevator doors opening to reveal Vision and Bruce.

"Thank god," Tony exhaled. "You guys took forever!"

Tony and Bruce fell into a discussion about how to stop the virus, leaving the rest of the team to just chat and try and formulate a plan to find HYDRA.

"The first case was in Camp Humphreys in South Korea, so that's probably a good starting point, right?" Natasha suggested. Vision nodded. "According to my databases, it was a young boy who was transferred the virus. Only one person survived: a guy named Ellis. He's a soldier there, and, unsurprisingly, has old affiliations with HYDRA," The android commented.

"Then, should we find that guy?" Wade queried. "Sounds like a plan," Steve decided.

"Hey!" Peter interjected into Tony and Bruce's conversation - which had fallen into an argument. "We have a plan, so if you guys want to debate on the way to South Korea, you're welcome to, but we should head out as soon as possible!"

A few minutes later, they were suited up and on the Quinjet, en route to Ellis Lane's residence.

They made it fairly quickly, only taking a few hours thanks to Tony's technology. Before landing, they scoped out the area: the zombies had clearly noticed their arrival and were milling around beneath the ship. So, Tony used the disguising function and navigated to a thankfully deserted area.

The team stepped out of the ship and talked quietly. "Natasha, you're going to go through the back with Steve. Bucky, Wanda, and Sam, you two need to take the west window. Peter and Wade will take the east window, and Vision and I will take the front door. Meet together by the stairwell. Bruce, you stay in the jet, and if the worst happens, get the hell out as fast as you can," Tony instructed, whispering through the comms.

Peter and Wade split off from the group and headed toward their entry. Theirs was pretty much the furthest away, and there were hundreds of zombies in the way.

"What's the plan?" Peter asked. Wade squinted at the house. "Well, there are not great options for web slinging, though maybe we could climb a tree?" He suggested. "Or, we could try and have a diversion?" The boy continued. Peter grinned. "Good idea! We could like... set off a firecracker or something in the forest? Draw them away?"

Wade sighed. "I don't just... carry firecrackers. I do have a bomb, though!" He said brightly. Peter hesitated. "Do you have a smoke bomb by any chance?" He negotiated. "Fine... I do, I guess. That's boring, though," Wade complained.

"Do you _want _a forest fire?" Peter retorted. "Okayyyy, only for you though," Wade agreed.

Peter ran a few paces away and then hurled the smoke bomb into the woods quite a ways away. There was a loud crack and then the forest, some 800 yards away, erupted into smoke. The zombies, all hearing the noise, immediately went towards it, leaving the path clear for Wade and Peter to make a break for the side of the house.

Peter crouched next to the window, listening for any zombie sounds. "I'll go first," He whispered. "Wait, what? No, I'm going first! You already risked yourself throwing the grenade!" Wade protested. "Too late," Peter retorted, sliding the window open and bracing himself in case a zombie came flying at him.

He slid into the house and beckoned for Wade to follow, as it seemed safe. Peter could hear the rest of the team quietly entering the house.

There was a sudden scuffling, and a thud as a blur of black and purple fell through the ceiling with a crash and rolled to safety, raising a bow and arrow at Peter and Wade.

"What the fuck!" Wade screeched, jumping in front of Peter. The figure abruptly lowered his bow. "Peter? Wade?" He asked. "_Clint?_" Peter exclaimed, rushing forward. "Holy fuck, I thought you guys were zombies for a second!" The man gasped. "You should get your eyes checked," Wade said stubbornly. "And not point sharp things at us."

Clint pulled down his mask to give Wade a dirty look. "I just fell through the ceiling and I was wearing a mask. Sorry for not looking closely to shoot the people who weren't there before after I made a loud sound," He scoffed.

"What are you doing here?" Peter whispered. "I wasn't able to reply to your calls, so I was like 'what would Nat do?' and now I'm here!" Clint replied. The rest of the team had rushed into the room as soon as they heard the commotion.

Natasha ran over to Clint and hugged him, as the rest of the team slowly relaxed.

"Why did you fall through the ceiling?" Peter asked. "Oh, right, the guy up there jumped me. He's stuck though, so no worries, let's just go grab him as a team, yeah?" Clint suggested.

Stopping their attempt at silence, as that was ruined already, they made their way to the second floor to find the man - presumably Ellis - sitting inside a room with the gaping hole in the floor.

More carefully, they surrounded him and the man had evidently recognized his defeat when he heard them talking downstairs, as his hands were raised in surrender.

"Okay, Nat and Clint, you guys interrogate him, we'll keep guard and check around the house," Steve instructed.

Steve and Bucky stayed behind as the rest of the team went out in a group to search the house.

Everything was going well - almost too well - so it did surprise Peter when he carefully pulled a closet door open and a zombie lunged out at him.

Stumbling backward, he frantically shot a web at the zombie, pinning it to the wall...

but not before it had ripped through his sleeve and sank its teeth into his skin.

Pain pulsed under his skin as he took in what he had: 12 seconds to die.

Peter cursed repeatedly under his breath and staggered over to the window. The commotion had alerted the rest of the team, who were now staring in horror at Peter.

The boy threw open the window and stood carefully on the edge, terrified. "Wanda," He began slowly. "If I don't fall out of the window, you need to use your magic to push me."

Tony was running toward him, yelling something about helping him, but Vision grabbed him, holding him back.

Everyone was shouting at the top of their lungs and Wade was crying as he screamed at Peter to get away from the window and Wanda was staring at her hands in horror, clearly hoping she didn't have to do anything, and then-

Then Peter realized he wasn't convulsing yet.

He stared at his arm, and the black sludge he'd seen in the bite earlier was sizzling and popping like it had been turned into acid. As he watched, it dissolved into nothing.

Everyone had fallen silent and were staring at Peter as he slowly climbed down from the window.

"What's going on?" Sam asked, resting a tense hand on the holster of his gun.

Peter took a slow breath. "I think- I think I'm immune," He said softly. 

They all traded looks in complete silence: the zombies had heard the noise and were coming back toward the house, though it didn't seem like they were going to try and come in.

Peter made an executive decision. "I'm fairly sure I won't... turn... but I still want someone to be prepared to kill me at like... any point. It could be just a delay, but we need to be really careful," He announced. 

The team traded nervous glances. "Well... who wants to be the one to, um, do that?" Sam asked slowly. Nobody seemed very willing to volunteer. 

"I guess... I can?" Vision suggested hesitantly. "Okay. Yeah, good idea," Peter decided. "I guess we can continue on our search then?" 

They agreed on that, and Tony put an end to the webbed-up zombie with a quick blast to the head. 

After combing through the rest of the house, they decided to return to Natasha, Clint, Steve, and Bucky. 

"We were right, HYDRA did manufacture the virus," Natasha informed them. "Part of their fun little world domination plan," Clint added. "Their current base was centered in the camp - Camp Humphreys - and presumably there's a lot more information there. Ellis here doesn't know a lot," Natasha continued. "Although, the people who are in HYDRA's database as having worked with them are to be ignored from the spread - I suppose they just never switched the stuff back to normal."

There was a silence, as everyone from the search party was still incredibly tense. Natasha squinted at them. "What happened to you guys?" She asked, clearly noticing the worried atmosphere. 

Tony and Peter traded a look before Sam spoke up. "Peter got attacked by a zombie," He began. Natasha's eyes flew to Peter, who gestured at the torn suit and the fading bite marks. 

Ellis looked up from the corner, now suddenly intrigued.

The four who weren't there traded anxious looks. "What happened?" Clint pressed.

"We don't... really know," Tony answered. "It didn't work, at least. There was some sort of sludgy thing, but Peter's blood basically... burned it up." Steve and Bucky looked confused, but Clint and Natasha seemed to understand. "Maybe the radioactivity?" Natasha suggested. 

They looked at each other. "That... actually makes a lot of sense," Wade sighed. "So who else could be immune? Probably Bruce, right? And maybe me? Because I could out-heal the infected cells?"

Tony shrugged. "Probably, if that's how it really works. I wouldn't take any chances, though. The only person we _for sure _know can't get infected is Vision, because... you know... android. But Peter seems pretty safe so far."

"Although," Peter interjected. "My Spidey Senses don't seem to work on them," He told the group. "Maybe it's because of... whatever's making them a zombie? They're like... technically dead?"

Ellis seemed _very _interested in this information, so Peter ended up suggesting they move on, and head to the HYDRA base, while Natasha took care of threatening Ellis into swearing never to say anything.

Thankfully, it was only a couple hours away to the base. That gave them time to plan.

"We're gonna want teams again. We're stronger together, but if we're all in the same place, we are going to attract a _lot _of attention," Natasha pointed out. "Plus, that puts all of the 'targets' in a centralized location," She added. 

In the end, they came up with a plan. 

Natasha, Peter, and Clint would sneak in through the back, or any entrances they could find. Meanwhile, Wade, Vision, Wanda, and Tony would cause a huge ruckus at the front, and try to get in through brute force. Bruce would also join them, depending on the circumstances. Steve, Bucky, and Sam would try to make their way in on the opposite side from the original trio and draw out the main operatives and get them out of the way (read: kill them or at least knock them out). Meet up in the middle, wherever it was. 

Steve gave a rousing speech, as was his pre-mission signature. They then promptly split up.

Nat, Clint, and Peter waited for Tony to yell an affirmation of their distraction over the comms, which happened pretty quickly. They searched quickly for a back entrance, finding an old janitorial entrance behind a few gates. 

They found a small control room, with one main desk in the front of the room.

After disabling the few people that stood in their way, Natasha put a hard drive into what appeared to be the important computer - at the front - and promptly started stealing all of their files. 

The woman pulled up a few pages, and then nodded appreciatively, beckoning for the two to join her. "This looks like it is it. Project Z-03." Peter looked over her shoulder. It appeared to depict a chemical mixture that would be injected. "I don't suppose it mentions anything on how to stop it?" He asked.

Natasha frowned. "Yeah, but it's really encrypted. Give me a few minutes..." She typed a few things in Russian, and then sighed. "Alright, I have to bypass all of the security. Make sure nobody comes in, because I'm on a timer and I can't be distracted."

Peter opened the door to check the corridor, glad that it appeared empty. 

"How are you guys doing?" He whispered into the comm system. "Fighting the best we can!" Tony yelled, sounding like he was concentrating. "We're doing pretty well, but we're at a hard disadvantage because we can't seriously injure the zombies! HYDRA ops are easy to take care of, but it's not going very well otherwise."

The boy took a few steps into the hallway when his Spidey Senses went off suddenly. So, he was prepared when someone grabbed his wrist and yanked him into the shadows. The figure clicked a handcuff around his arm and the other half somehow magnetically connected to the side of the hallway. 

Peter swiftly hooked the figure - who he could now see was a woman - around the leg, tripping her up. He caught her with the handcuff chain around the neck, and slammed her against the wall, promptly using his web shooters to pin her there.

He dusted himself off, then pulled the handcuffs off of the wall and broke the chain.

Clint, who heard the noise, came out to see what happened. He saw the woman webbed to the wall, and gave an appreciative nod. "Nice job, kid. I'll take over outside for now, I think Nat may need better company," He said, chuckling.

Peter sent the man a grin, and then backtracked into the room.

Natasha was still hard at work on the coding, and Peter held his breath until she let out a cry of triumph and stopped typing. Peter rushed to her side. 

"Here! There are - blueprints, I think, for a device that should stop it. It looks like it'll emit some sort of frequency... and we'd have to broadcast it across the globe, and we have to do it from here, but that shouldn't be too hard..." She thought aloud. 

Peter grinned at her, and the two traded a high five. "Clint!" Peter called. "You can come in now!" 

Natasha finished downloading the prints when Clint came in. "You guys got it?" He checked. Nat nodded with a grin. "Nice!" Clint cheered.

"We got them!" Peter exclaimed into the comms. "Okay, great! We found a central room where we can meet," Sam reported. "We cleared it out, and it's right in the center," Steve added. 

"We're on our way," Wanda declared. "Same here," Clint told them.

Natasha led the way to the room, having seen it in the files earlier. They all met up and beamed at each other.

"Okay, I'm going to use this computer," Natasha decided, inserting the hard drive. "And project the signal."

Peter's Spidey Senses went off, and he shouted a warning. "Something's about to happen!" He yelled.

All the doors burst open, and a ton of zombies and HYDRA agents burst into the room. The Avengers were pressed into a half-circle on the side of the room. They were once again at a distinct disadvantage, as they were all trying to avoid seriously hurting the people.

Their defense circle around Nat, who was frantically trying to speed up the process, was slowly growing smaller. 

Steve let out a surprised shout as he was knocked to the ground. Bucky rushed to help him, but was forced back by the rest of the crowd.

The super soldier disappeared under the mass of the zombie horde, and everyone started panicking. Sam was the next to be taken down, wing of his Falcon suit torn off and sending him spiraling into the ground in the middle of the fray.

Now missing two members who had probably been turned, they were in close quarters and definitely losing.

Clint was being dragged into the crowd, but then something happened.

There was a loud thud, and the zombies hesitated at the sound.

"Boom," A voice announced through the silence.

"You lookin' for this?"

A blinding light flashed through the room as something was fired into the enormous crowd. The zombies and agents all slumped to the ground.

Rhodey was grinning proudly on the other side of the room.

"Rhodey!" Tony exclaimed, beaming as his mask retracted. 

"I was just trying to figure out what was going on, and I remembered that FRIDAY had our suits linked, and you just updated my suit with the taser ray, so I came as fast as I could!"

Peter was grinning so widely that his face hurt. "Thank _god!_ " He exclaimed, incredibly relieved.

"I've got it!" Natasha crowed. A loud noise split through the room, and all of the zombies started spasming on the ground. 

Peter and Tony exchanged concerned looks, but mutually agreed that it probably was the intended result.

"I just have to broadcast it from the satellites for a few minutes, and then we're good!" Natasha told them. 

Clint, who had shaken off the now-tased zombies had run to her side, and the two hugged, smiling.

They had done it.

Silence fell across the room again, as they all grinned and hugged each other, thankful.

Soon, they'd have to evacuate the base and burn it down. 

And they'd have to deal with the aftermath of the damage the zombies had done.

But for now, that wasn't something they had to worry about.

They'd get SHIELD to run damage control - especially considering this wasn't exactly their fault anyways.

There was a lot to do. But for the moment, they had saved the world, and they were content with that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oh boy that took forever
> 
> it's past midnight, which, all things considered, is pretty good timing
> 
> anywayssss hope y'all enjoyed! have a great day/night/morning/crisis/afternoon/evening/abyss/whatever you guys are doing right now!
> 
> this was one of the longer ones I've done recently haha
> 
> i've written wayyy too much today

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you guys liked that! I'm just bringing items over from Wattpad to here, but feel free to leave a request!


End file.
